Of the Same Coin
by Phoenix Audubon
Summary: He is their enemy, but looks like he could be their friend. What will happen when the truth is revealed? A fourpart miniseries. Complete!
1. Carbon Copy

_…Of the Same Coin_

Part I:  Carbon Copy

_"The war was a mirror; it reflected man's every virtue and every vice, and if you looked closely, like an artist at his drawings, it showed up both with unusual clarity."_

_-- George Grosz_

            From atop a bank of heavy, gloomy gray clouds stands one of the most ominous places anywhere on Earth…or above it, for that matter.  For this is the black castle of the terrible No Heart.  It is here that the wicked wizard would formulate and execute his plans to drain every ounce of caring and good cheer from every human and creature on the world below…

            …Or so he had been up until about two months ago.  After nearly succeeding in ridding himself of the Care Bear Family, a group of special animals whose mission was to protect the love and emotions of Earth's inhabitants from foes such as No Heart, the fiend was ultimately defeated by a newcomer to that group named Defender Bear.  Possessing magic not found in any other bear or cousin and rivaling that of the wizard, Defender undid all the harm No Heart had caused and cast the villain to parts unknown.

            And so, the cold black castle stood silent and empty.

            …Well, almost empty.  Actually, there was someone still in the castle:  No Heart's servant, Beastly.  Without his master around (and not being sufficiently shrewd, calculating, strategic, or even harmful enough to confront the entire Care Bear Family on his own), the small and scraggly imp was content to just continue the upkeep of the castle.  At first, he kept on washing dishes and scrubbing the floors out of fear of No Heart's return.  However, as the days turned to weeks with no sign of the wizard, Beastly decided to "claim" the castle as his own.  So, he would often run through the halls screaming at the top of his lungs, or toss a few books onto the floor of No Heart's study, all the while saying to himself, "No more 'Beastly, don't do that,' or 'Beastly, fetch me this!'  And, even better, no more lighting bolts to my behind!  Life is good…I mean, life is bad, or…oh, who cares!"

            Today, Beastly had just finished sweeping "his" throne room, and sat on the ornate ebony throne to admire his handiwork.  "Now I see why No Heart liked to sit here so much," he chortled aloud.  "What a great view from here, and this chair, hoo-hoo!  Something about it is so…so…"

            But just then, a strong, cold wind rushed through the window openings, and despite his pelt, made Beastly begin to shiver.  A moment later, and a large, black shapeless mass darted into the center of the throne room.  Once it all collected together, it began to twist and contort itself violently before it emitted a bright flash of purple light that made the surprised Beastly cower in "his" chair.  Once he regained his vision, Beastly peeked out to the room to see what had entered the castle.  And then, he saw him:  standing in the middle of the room, in his trademark dark purple robe and cowl, was No Heart himself.

            Beastly stifled a yelp.  He could hear his master breathing deeply and watched through almost-shut eyes as his shoulders rose up and down.  And though most of his face was shrouded inside the cowl, Beastly could see two narrowed red eyes topped by a pair of bushy eyebrows set in an angry angle.  For some time, that was all the wizard was doing.

            "BEASTLY!!!!!!"  Finally, No Heart broke the silence the best way he knew how.  The bellow resonated throughout the entire castle and caused his fur ball more quivering.  A few gasps for air (and confidence) later and Beastly was finally coherent enough to reply.

            "Buh…buh…N-N-N-No Heart!  Y-You're back!  I'm…I'm s-s-so happy to see you again!  I was so w-worried about you!  I k-kept the castle nice and neat, _just_ for you!  Well, e-e-except for your study, but-but I can explain that!  You see…"

            "SILENCE!!!" roared the evil one again, sending his minion back into a huddle.  The next time he spoke however, was much softer, yet it still maintained a hint of contempt.

            "Beastly, how long have I been gone?"

            This change of tone threw off the little weird one.  Had he already overcome his anger, or merely storing up for another shouting salvo?  Beastly decided he'd better answer, regardless.

            "Uh…about two months, Boss?"

            "And, why was it that I left?"

            Beastly swallowed hard.  Was No Heart expecting the truth here?  He was sure he'd get some kind of punishment, no matter what he said. So, Beastly did what he often did—stall.  "Um, well Boss, it-it was _so_ long ago…a-a-and I don't really, uh, I can't seem to…that is, I, um…"

            "Oh, you don't remember?" No Heart interrupted, sounding unusually concerned.  "Well, in that case, let me refresh your memory…I WAS BEATEN BY A CARE BEAR!!!"

            "Eeeeep!" Beastly was sure he'd done it now—the booming voice of his master sent him jumping off the throne and quickly hid behind it.

            "And, not just any Care Bear; a Care Bear with magic as powerful as my own!

I must know where that wretched creature obtained such power.  Even my Cloud of Uncaring couldn't stop him!  So, after I was thrown from my own castle, I spent all that time, thinking of nothing but one thing—_revenge_!  I have finally come up with a way to rid of me of that magic-wielding pest once and for all, with this!"  No Heart held his hand out in front of him, and something shiny appeared.  It was a small white sphere, with an almost fluid feature to it as it swirled about and bulged in and out all around.

            Beastly was curious enough to overcome his dread and peered around the throne.  "Gosh, No Heart, that's so…so…what is it?"

            "This, Beastly," answered No Heart with rare contentment, "is a small sample of the life force of that foolish, foolish Defender Bear.  Just as I was defeated, I managed to siphon this away from him before I was ejected.  And, I plan to use this to exact my revenge!

            "_Beastly!!_  Go to my study and bring me my spell book on life animation…_NOW!_"  
            The subordinate instinctively scurried out of the throne room towards the study upstairs.  As he got closer though, Beastly began to slow down a bit.  He realized that it was still a mess in there, what with all the books he'd randomly thrown about.  "*gulp* How am I going to find that book?" moaned Beastly.  "If I don't bring it to No Heart fast, he'll have it in for me for sure…"  When he got to the room, by a stroke of luck, the book he needed was at the very top of the pile of volumes on the floor.  Exhaling a huge sigh of relief for his fortune, the furball grabbed the book and made his way back down to the chronically impatient No Heart.

            "Here you are, Boss!" Beastly gloated as he proudly handed over the tome.

            "Excellent, Beastly.  And now, leave before you try my patience any further!"  No more needed to be said; the little lackey dashed away once more to the study to try and clean up his mess before his master saw it.  No Heart instantly transported himself to his laboratory, where he opened his "life animation" spell book, and set to work on his new scheme.  Over a heated cauldron, the wizard mixed potions, powders, and other ingredients to make a bubbling, glowing green mixture.  When he seemed satisfied with its outcome, he took the life essence he'd taken from Defender Bear and held it in his hands above the green mixture.  As soon as the fumes made contact with the essence, it stretched and contracted itself violently for a few seconds before it changed color from white to black.  No Heart then dropped the sphere into the mixture.   Once it submerged, the concoction began to thicken, and it almost seemed like something was moving around inside the cauldron.  "Yes," said No Heart, "yes…arise!"

            Whatever was within the cauldron slowly lifted itself out of the green liquid…

            …A hand.  Once the ooze slid off it, it revealed not just any hand; it was a black bear's paw.  It grabbed the rim of the cauldron and began to pull itself upwards.  As the rest of the figure broke the surface of the bubbling brew, No Heart was pleased with the result—he had created his own bear, covered in black fur save for white fur on its' chest and muzzle.

            "Now, you listen to me, bear!" the wizard spoke to his handiwork.  "I am your master, No Heart, the most powerful wizard of all time!  You will obey me!  Is that understood?"

            "I understand, Master No Heart," replied the black bear with little emotion.

"Good.  I suppose I should name you…I think the name 'Shade Foyle' will work.  Now, for your first task…" His thin, bony hands started to glow, and the image of Defender Bear appeared in front of Shade.  "_This_ is the Care Bear who has been quite a nuisance to me.  I want you to make him disappear for a very long time.   And, I want you to take his place at his home in Care-a-Lot.  Spread as much mayhem, confusion, and hate as you can in his name.  Do you understand?"

            Again, the black bear replied, "I understand, Master No Heart."

            "Good.  Then, go!"  With a firm wave of his arm, No Heart motioned to an open window.  Shade walked towards the window, jumped out, and started to fly off towards his target, all to the fiendish content of the uncaring wizard.

            "Let's see you try and protect your friends from yourself, foolish bear…"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

            Elsewhere, another person was doing some cleaning of his own.  From within his old mountaintop cave home, Defender Bear, a.k.a. Phoenix Audubon, was spending his morning giving the cave a good cleansing.  He had already wiped the polished rock wall that served as a mirror, gathered up stones into a neat pile, and strained out dead insects or other impurities from the pond within.  And now, the white Care Bear was just about finished sweeping the cavern floor.  With a few more swishes, he was finished, and he set the broom against the stone wall.  Defender wiped his brow with bottom corner of his red-and-blue cloak, and admired his accomplishment.

            "Whew…It looks so much better now!  Who says I shouldn't take care of this place?  After all, I spent two decades here, with the phoenix, my protector…"  Defender paused for a moment of silence, and then inhaled deeply.  "…But hey, this all helped me get me where I am now:  a family who cares about me, someone who loves me," he sighed contentedly.  "Well, I'd better get back home soon."

            Phoenix reached over to grab the broom to take with him, but his hand stopped before it got there.  Just then, he sensed something.  He wasn't sure what it was, but it was close, very close.  The bear quickly snatched the broomstick and assumed a defensive fighting stance, one foot a step behind the other, holding the broomstick in front of him as if it were his staff.

            "Wh…who's there?  I know someone's around here (though he wasn't actually certain of that), and I'm warning you—I'm not called 'Defender Bear' without a good reason."  He waited for any sign of movement or anything, but he didn't see any indication of an intruder.  Phoenix turned around to observe himself in the mirror.  "I'm not crazy, am I?  I could've _sworn _I sensed something…or someone…" That was when he noticed something in the reflection.  Off in the back of the cave he could see someone there.  He tried not to move his eyes as he was looking at what appeared to be a Care Bear with black fur.  Defender quickly spun around, but the stranger was not there.  He looked back to the mirror, and it was gone from the reflection as well.  "This is not good…I don't who or what that was, but I think I'd better warn the other Care Bears about this.  Now, I'm _really_ regretting that I forgot to bring my Care Phone."

            Defender Bear turned around to leave, but he jumped at what he saw standing in front of him.  It was the same black bear he had seen earlier—and up close, Phoenix realized that this bear had the same triangular nose that he did. (All of the other bears and most of the cousins had a heart-shaped nose.)  Other than the black fur and the lack of clothes and a tummy symbol, the white bear could've sworn he was still facing the mirror wall.

            "Who _are_ you!?!" Phoenix demanded of the black bear who, instead of replying, disappeared with a cloud of dark purple smoke.  Phoenix was still sorting what he'd just seen in his head when he was grabbed from behind by his neck and right wrist.

            "_*Ack*_…Wh…what are you doing?!"

            "What I was told to do," was the monotone reply.  As soon as he said that, the black bear sent a high charge of electricity coursing through Defender's body.  He screamed out and writhed in agony, until his body finally succumbed and his head slumped forward.

            Shade Foyle put his unconscious victim on the floor of the cave.  He also disrobed him and set the articles aside.  The black bear walked over to the pool of water, put his hand out, and muttered some magic words.  The water began to shine as if an underwater light had been turned on, and then dimmed back to normal.  Shade slowly stepped into the pond, and laid down supine and submerged underwater with his eyes closed, motionless, and without breathing for a minute or two.  When the black bear lifted himself out, as soon as his body broke the surface of the water, the black of his fur was washed away, so that when he stepped out completely, his pelt was as white as Defender's.  After shaking himself dry, Shade walked over to the comatose body of Defender Bear.  He put one hand on top of his chest over the shield tummy symbol, and chanted some more words of magic.  These caused the tummy symbol to illuminate with a bright and shiny white light.  Shade put his other hand over his chest, and the same area began to glow.  When both lights faded, the impostor bear now had a copy of Defender's tummy symbol on his own chest.  Shade put on Defender Bear's vest, shorts, cloak, and gloves to complete the disguise.

            Shade examined himself in the mirror.  However, as he was checking himself over, he suddenly had an uneasy feeling.  Something about seeing himself as his captive triggered some kind of reaction.

            _What is this feeling, _Shade thought to himself, a little anxious.  _Who is this bear that I'm supposed to pretend to be?  I don't know who he is, and yet, when I see me as him, I feel like I _do _know him._

This new sensation was giving the formerly black bear a severe headache.  He thought he had a simple mission, but if he really did know this other guy…Shade decided he'd just try not to think about his victim and just do what he was told to do, lest he incur the wrath of his master, No Heart.  Shade-as-Defender walked out of the mountain cave, spoke some more magic words, and lifted his hand at the entrance.  This first part complete, the impostor began to fly towards Care-a-Lot.  For an instant, Shade thought it was peculiar he not only knew so much magic, but also where he was going despite never having heard of it.  But these thoughts were cast aside with the others as he continued on his way.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

            At Care-a-Lot, Funshine Bear was making sure bears and cousins were arriving at and departing the runway in an orderly fashion.  She was directing Tenderheart Bear on his rainbow roller to land on one section, and then waved an orange flag at Swift Heart Rabbit and Champ Bear for them to proceed with takeoff.  They were the last for Funshine, and when she finally had a chance to wipe her brow, she noticed a lone bear coming towards the landing strip.  Since this bear was flying without a cloud car or rainbow roller, she instantly realized that it must be Defender Bear.  She waved her flag to have him land far on her right, but he ignored the signal.  Traveling at full speed, Funshine had to duck under the flying bear, who touched down to a slight skid and stop.

            The yellow bear quickly whirled around.  "Hey, Defender!  Didn't you see my signal?  You were supposed to land over there!  You almost—"

            "I don't have time for this," was the abrupt brush-off.  Defender still had his back towards Funshine, and he proceeded to walk away.  Funshine took a few steps to follow him, but she decided to pursue neither him nor the incident.  "What was that all about?" she said to herself.  "I wonder what happened while he was out.  That sure was a lot of steam he was venting.  At least, I _hope_ that's what that was…"

            As Defender Bear (actually Shade Foyle in disguise) made his way through the cloud city, he was doing his best to maintain a stoic face while observing all there was to this unfamiliar place.  Or, was it unfamiliar?  It was almost like _déjà vu_—it felt like he'd been here before, except Shade hadn't been here before.  It felt similar to the sensation he felt at the cave…Were these some kind of memories?  But, Shade didn't have very many memories…and now that he thought about it, it seemed odd he couldn't remember his past.  "Ooohhh," groaned the bear.   All these conflicting ideas were giving him another headache.

            "Gosh, Defender, are you okay?"

            "Wha-?  Who's there?"  The imposter turned around, and saw two slightly younger bears, identical except for their fur colors and symbols on their chest, staring back at him with eyes so full of eagerness, it was rather unsettling for the intruder.

            One of these twin bears, with a light pink color, giggled.  "It's us, silly!  Hugs and Tugs, not easy to forgot."

            "Oh…right.  Well, what do you want?"

            This time, the other, light blue bear, spoke.  "We want you to show us some of your magic.  You keep saying you're too busy for us, but we're not leaving until you show us something!"

            "Yeah!" added the first one.  "You have that fire bird spirit in you, right, Defender?  Let's see something with fire!"

            A sly smile spread across the impostor's muzzle.  This was a perfect opportunity to terrorize these inhabitants.  "You want fire, do you?" he asked them impishly.  "Well, since you asked," He held out each one of his hands in front of both twins.  Small fires sprouted out of each palm.

            "Oooooo…" said both Hugs and Tugs, intently staring at the flames.  With a couple of slight finger motions, the flames began to stretch upward in a twisting column, until they formed identical fiery dragons, two feet tall, with tiny fiery wings flittering rapidly.  The twins gasped in delight at the demonstration.  That is, until the dragons both started spitting flames at Hugs and Tugs.  They both yelped and jumped out of the way, but the dragons started to pursue both of them, snapping at them and continuing to spit streams of fire at their heads.  They yelled to "Defender", "Make them stop!  Please, call them off!" But, the white bear only stood there, with that same mischievous smile, as Hugs and Tugs ran away with the fiery apparitions still in hot pursuit.

            Meanwhile, at the Hall of Hearts, Tenderheart Bear, Brave Heart Lion, Lotsa Heart Elephant, Champ Bear, Loyal Heart Dog, and Grumpy Bear have their hands full as they carry a large mirror inside.

            "Urf!  I'll be glad when we get this into the meeting room," griped Grumpy.  Once they got it past the doors, Cheer Bear and Wish Bear directed the six to make sure it was placed in the center of the wall.

"A little more to the left, you guys…that's perfect!" exalted Cheer, to which Grumpy and Bright Heart Raccoon started to secure it to the wall.  "I'm just glad we don't have to attach it _off the ground_," Grumpy continued with his complaints.

"Don't worry, it's an easy job from here on out," his friend replied.  "Hand me the drill, would you?"

"Sure.  Speaking of jobs, wasn't it Defender Bear's job to help carry this mirror in here?  Where has he been all this time?"

"Today was the day he went to his cave to do some housekeeping, so to speak," answered Wish.  "He left this morning, but I haven't seen him since then."  
            "Did you try calling him on his caring phone?" asked Tenderheart.  Wish shook her head.  "He forgot to take it with him today.  I hadn't thought much of it; he's done it a couple of times before.  But, now that you mention it…I would've expected him back by now."

Just then, Share Bear ran into the meeting room, stopping right in front of Wish.  "Hey, uh, Wish, have you seen Defender Bear lately?" she asked between gasps.

"I just finished telling the guys here that I haven't seen him since he left this morning.  Why, Share?  Has he come back?"

"Oh, he's back, all right," said the lavender bear, "but if I were you, I wouldn't be happy to see him."

"What are you talking about?"  
            "I saw Hugs and Tugs earlier, and they looked like they had just run a marathon.  When I asked them what happened, they said that Defender had unleashed two dragons made of fire after them.  It sounded crazy, even for me, but there was a patch of singed fur on Hugs's shoulder.  When I asked where the dragons were, Hugs and Tugs said they disappeared a while back, like they burned themselves out, or something.

"Now, I'd be lying if I said this wasn't something I wouldn't expect of Defender," Share Bear commented offhand, "but even if it was just his idea of a practical joke, he's gone too far!"

"But, that doesn't sound like Phoenix at all," said Wish Bear.  "He's said before that he doesn't want to hurt anybody.  And, he's never been much for practical jokes, either.  (Brave Heart lifted a finger in an attempt to interrupt, but decided the time Defender got the jump on him was excusable compared to this.)"

"Well, why don't you go see if you can't find out what Defender's got to say about all of this, Wish Bear," suggested Tenderheart.  "In the meantime, we'll get Take Care to look at Hugs and Tugs, and make sure they're all right."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

_The lamb was too easy to frighten; one electric bolt that misses her, and she ran off.  Now, the mute was more interesting.  He took quite a bit of punishment before I finally got a yell out of him.  He certainly won't be taking any more walks for quite some time… These "Care Bears" and "Cousins"…they don't realize how much damage I can bring to them._

The impostor Defender Bear was thinking to himself as he stared at the reflection in the mirror of Defender's house.  Both were so still, one could easily confuse the mirror image for the "real" bear.

_And yet, they seem to trust this bear that I've replaced.  Who is this "Defender Bear" they keep calling me?  And, why do I feel like I know him?  How did I know that this house belongs to him?  Why!?  _The confusion was starting to take its' toll on the bear's mind.  _These distractions are becoming harder and harder to ignore.  I must continue to bring chaos to these people, or else…_

"Phoenix?"

The voice wrenched "Defender" back into reality, and he snapped his head towards the source.  Standing at the edge of the doorway was a teal bear, with shooting stars on her chest.  Her face was slightly contorted, seemingly caught between worry and anger.  "We need to talk," she sternly declared.

"Humph."  The white bear simply turned away.

"Don't you try to disregard me, Phoenix Audubon.  There are some very heavy charges being brought against you, and I don't want to believe them."  Wish paused for a moment.

"But if you don't give me any explanation, anything to save your name, then I fear…well, I…"

There was no movement from the white bear.  However, if Wish could've seen her companion's face, it would've been one of shock. His eyes were wide open, and frantically darting from side to side.  His brow was furrowed from deep thought, his breathing shallow, and his pulse rapid.  The impostor didn't know who this bear was, but he was having some kind of reaction to her.

_Who is this bear_,he tried to ponder in his mind.  _What is this feeling that's swelling inside of me?  Is she the cause of it?_

"I…I wish I could explain to you…"

As soon as he realized he'd let those words slip, "Phoenix" slapped his hands over his mouth.  _Did I just say that? I don't want to tell **anybody **the truth…or do I?_

"You know you can tell me anything, dear," said Wish Bear soothingly.  "Please, trust in me, Phoenix…

"After all, you told me that you love me."

It was the word "love" that shattered the unsound emotional restraints of the impostor.  He veered wildly at the teal bear, and with his magic, seized her in a distant, invisible choking grip.  Her gasps only lasted for a second before she was hurled to the opposite wall with a "WHAM!", and slid to the floor below in a slump.  As "Defender" looked at the motionless body, the simultaneous waves of rage, sorrow, bewilderment, and guilt (all unbeknownst to the bear) continued to pound against his psyche.

"These bears, they cause me to feel these strange sensations!  Why do they cause me so much pain?  Actually, not all of them are painful…but there is no time to figure this out.  I must stop these sensations!  I mustn't fail Master No Heart, lest he harm me.   I must stop them, once and for all!"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

As one bear sought to snuff life, elsewhere, someone else's began to stir.

"Ooohhhhh…that must've been some party last night," he babbled.  When he opened his and saw light, the real Phoenix Audubon, Defender Bear, shook his head several times to clear his thoughts.

"Wait a second...there was no party.  No, I remember—the black bear!  Where did he go?" Defender looked down.  "And, where are my clothes?"  He turned over on the floor of his cave and managed to get to his knees.  The shock that had disabled him a while back still left his legs unsteady, so he had to crawl towards a wall and prop himself up against it.  Being able to think clearly once again, Defender began to sense something coming from the pond.  The bear approached it cautiously.

"What did this bear do while I was out cold?  I know there's been some magic used here, but I can't really discern its' nature.  And," Defender thought out loud, stroking his chin, "the magic…it feels like mine.  But, how could I use magic if I was subdued?  I fear all these stray puzzle pieces are going to make something unpleasant.  First things first; I'd better warn Care-a-Lot about this bogus bear."  He made to walk out of the mouth of the cave, until…

_BONK!_

"Ow!  Hey!  What the…?"  Instead of getting outside, Defender Bear felt like he'd walked straight smack into a wall.  However, after rubbing his just-smashed muzzle, he didn't see any wall.  He put his hands out, and indeed, there was an invisible barrier at the threshold of the cave.  He began to beat on with his fists, but failed to even dent it.  The bear took a few steps back, rubbed his hands, conjured two tennis ball-sized fireballs, and hurled them at the invisible wall.  They struck the wall, but did nothing to weaken it.

"Well, I'd say this guy didn't want me to leave," he quipped.  "Now I'm _really_ starting to get worried.  I've got to find a way out of here!"  Just then, Phoenix remembered he'd brought something with him.  As he ran to the back of the cave, he only hoped that the intruder hadn't found it during his downtime.

Fortunately, Phoenix Audubon's book of spells was still under the pile of rocks, hidden in the same spot where he had discovered it for the first time months ago.  The bear dusted off the cover, and began to scour its pages, searching for any technique that could help him escape.  When Defender separated two stuck pages, he found something that seemed promising.

"Mirrorwalking," the bear read aloud, "A technique in which the caster uses a mirror, or any highly polished surface, to travel great distances with ease, or reach areas the caster couldn't access under the current conditions—yes, I'd say this counts as one of those 'conditions'.  Let's see here...to mirrorwalk, the caster must concentrate their magical energies on the target surface.  The caster will then pass through the surface, thus stepping into the reflection.

"As is the nature of reflections, what is being reflected is what the caster shall experience, though the caster must remember that it is only a likeness, and so not all may be as the real entity.

"I'm not sure what that last part means, but any way I can get out of here, I'm willing to try."  Tucking the large book under his arm, Phoenix walked up to the glossy section of the cave wall.  Since it wasn't an actual mirror, there was a gray overtone to the image, but otherwise looked just like the real thing.  "Well, here goes nothing," said the bear.  He put his right hand on the wall, closed his eyes, and started focusing his magic towards the wall.  A minute or so later, the solid wall began to have a softened, more gelatinous feel to it.  Defender Bear took one deep breath, and pushed himself into the reflection.

When he opened his eyes again, Phoenix was again standing in his cave, only everything was now reversed.  Whereas the opening leading outside was normally to the left of glossy wall, it was now to its right.

"Okay, now that I'm here, now what?" the bear asked aloud to himself.  Something struck him funny about his voice.  The walls of the cave were always acoustically conducive, but now, there wasn't much echo to his voice.  _Does this have something to do with this just being the reflection of the cave? _he thought.  _Well, since a mirror only reflects sights and not sounds, I guess that would make some sense…I guess.  _But, this gave the bear an idea.  He stepped towards the "relocated" exit.  He turned his head to try and see the barrier that was in place in the real cave, but he couldn't see anything here, either.  So, Phoenix put out his had and felt around for the invisible wall…but there was nothing there.  Indeed, he was able to reach out to the exterior of the mountainside.  "A-ha!" the bear gloated.  "It's just as I thought.  Since the wall was invisible, the mirror would only reflect what it could 'see'—nothing.  Logic like this would make Bright Heart excited with interest, I bet."  Defender was so happy at this triumph, but what he discovered outside of the cave stunned it all out of him.

Instead of the blue, sunny skies Defender Bear was used to, the gray of the reflection inside the cave continued outdoors.  But, even more astonishing was that, not far from the side of the mountain, everything seemed to disappear behind a foggy background.  "Where'd everything go?" said the bear in the same flat voice.  He pondered about the mirror once more.  _The reflection didn't see outside, so does that mean that the magic couldn't fill in all the details?  But, there's still stuff out there, isn't there?  I think the logic is starting to surpass me.  But, there's one way to find out._

Phoenix turned to the front inside cover of the book, where he kept a picture of himself and his beloved Wish Bear.  He held the photograph to his forehead, and began to concentrate.

_I am reaching out to a member of my family.  Show me the way._

Moments later, Phoenix began to feel an impulse coming from the south.  In the "real world", Care-a-Lot was usually north from his cave, so this seemed to make sense to the bear.  Phoenix took another deep breath, and flew into the gray fog.  Making his way through, there seemed to be nothing but fog until the bear started to see flat, shining squares floating here and there.  Defender flew up to one of them, and within it he could see what appeared to be a living room, and it was full with color (as opposed to all the gray surrounding Defender).  He put his finger up to the square, and pressed against the square (it having the same jellylike feel to it as the one from his cave), letting it almost pass through.  "These must be other mirrors," Phoenix concluded.  "These would be how I get back to the real world.  Now, I have to find the one to my house."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Is Secret going to be alright?" asked Gentle Heart Lamb worriedly.  All she could do was watch as Cheer Bear and Take Care Bear pulled the severely injured Secret Bear from the back of the cloud ambulance on a stretcher.  He had cuts and bruises all over his face and arms (the rest of him covered by a sheet); one eye swollen shut, and wasn't showing signs of movement.  "I mean, after Defender Bear tried to hit me with lightning, and I ran off in the Forest of Feelings, but then I found Secret Bear, and he was hanging from the tree, all tied by his wrists, and he was…"

"Take Care and Cheer are going to do all they can to make sure he gets better, and that's the truth," replied Lotsa Heart, padding Gentle Heart on her shoulder to try and assure his friend.

The looks on True Heart's and Noble Heart's faces were not as compassionate.

"First Funshine, then Hugs and Tugs, now Gentle Heart, and poor Secret," True Heart listed off.  "I hate to say it, Noble Heart, but the Care Bear Family has got a serious problem from within."

"If we do have a problem, True Heart, we had best see to it as soon as possible," the elder concurred.  He flipped open his Caring Phone.  "This is Noble Heart to Caring Control Center.  Come in, Control Center."

"This is Control Center."  It was Bright Heart answering.  "Go ahead, Noble Heart."

"Bright Heart, has there been any word from Wish Bear?"

"Negative.  We haven't heard any word from her since she left to find Defender."

"Can you tell me where she is right now?"  Noble Heart could hear the typing of keys through the earpiece.  "It looks like Wish's phone puts her at Defender Bear's house; his phone isn't giving off a signal, though.  He must have turned it off."  After that, someone else picked up the control center's radio.

"Noble Heart, this is Share Bear.  I'll go check on Wish and see what's going on over there."

"Good idea, Share.  In the meantime, have Bright Heart send out the message to all bears and cousins that we're having an emergency meeting, and have everyone convene at the Hall of Hearts as soon as possible."

"You got it," Share replied.  She stepped out of the control center and got onto a rainbow roller outside.  Share landed it a short distance later, right outside Defender's house.  She was skeptically expecting to be some kind of argument when she arrived, but instead, it was silent all around.  Share knocked on the door a few times.  "Hello?  Wish?  Defender?"  She got no response.  Testing the knob, she found it unlocked.  Taking a second to prepare for any sort of surprise, Share quickly turned the knob and shoved the door open.  To her horror, she saw Wish Bear lying scattered next to the opposite wall of the one-room house.  Share hurried to her side and shook Wish to she if she was all right.  Fortunately, Wish started to moan from being moved.

"Ooooo…W…What happened?"

"I should be asking you that question," Share retorted.  "What's going on?  Where's Defender?"

"I…I…he threw me against the wall," Wish muttered, breaking eye contact with her friend.  "But…he's not acting himself, Share.  I…I…I just…still can't believe…"

"Aaaah!  Oomph!"

The two girls were interrupted by a distant voice and crash.  They both turned around; it seemed to have come from the bathroom.

Share asked hushed, "What was that?"

"I don't know," said Wish.  Share helped her friend to her feet, and they warily crept towards the bathroom.  They stood on either side of the door, backs against the wall.  Share put her hand on the knob to open it.  When she saw Wish nod, she quickly opened it, slowly turned her head in to look, and then screamed.

Wish looked in and there, face down on the floor, was Defender Bear.

"No, I don't need any help, but thanks for offering, and yes, I'm fine," he grumbled as he made to push himself off of the floor.

"After what you've done, you're going to need a lot of help," Share scorned.

"What do you mean, 'what I've done'?  Do you have idea what I've been through today?"

"Not as bad as what _we've_ been through!"

"Wish, what is she talking about?  What is going on?" said Defender, confused.  "Wait a minute, have you been hurt!?  Oh, my gosh!  Are you okay?"

"Um…"  While Wish fought with herself whether to talk to whom she thought was her true love, Share put her arm in front of her friend.

"Wish probably doesn't want to talk to you anymore, and frankly, I can understand why.  I'm not buying your ignorance one bit!  Every since you got back from your cave, you've hurt a lot of people.  Funshine, Hugs and Tugs, Gentle Heart, and don't get me started with Secret Bear!"

"What…?" Defender tried to step in, but Share continued to fire away.

"We all trusted you—well, _most _of us, anyway—and yet, you threw it all away in one day!  I'd ask you why you did it, but there's no reason that could possibly explain such atrocious actions."

"But…"

"I don't know how you got in here, probably your magic, but I think you've caused enough of a mess as it is, so you might as well just go back the way you came!"

Having heard enough of the unbelievably callous derision, Defender responded by pointing a finger at the light purple bear.  "Now just a minute, Share Bear!  It sounds to me as if we've all been duped.  Don't think so?  Well, let me tell you this:  I wouldn't start accusing me, especially since you don't know what I had to do to get here.

            "There I was, cleaning my old home, minding my own business, and then I get attacked from behind by some black bear!  You heard me, Share—and I'm not done yet, so you might as well close your mouth.  Next thing I know, I'm on the floor with all my clothes gone.  I _was_ going to try and warn everyone about this black bear, but he trapped me, in my own cave.  Lucky for me, I brought my spell book with me, so I managed to find a way out of there by going through the mirror.  I was trying to come out the mirror in the main room of my house, but this ended up being close enough, and the book also broke my fall…

            "But, don't you get it?  I've been locked away this whole time.  Whatever you think I did, I didn't.  And, from what you said, someone has been causing a lot of trouble here.   How much do you want to bet the bear who ambushed me is the same one stirring up trouble here?"

            This was certainly a surprise to Share—could what Defender be saying be true?  She was finding it rather difficult to compute all this information in her head.

            "Look, Share," Defender added, more coolly this time, "we're getting nowhere here arguing with each other.  If we're going to do something, we need to do it now.  Please, if ever you needed to trust me, I think now would be the best time to do that.

            "And Wish," he was now looking at his slightly-huddling darling, "you know I wouldn't lay a hand on you like that.  But, I will apologize that I let something awful happen to you.  Please, dear, tell me you still have faith in me…"

            And for a minute, the only thing that could be heard was the bated breath of the three bears echoing in the small bathroom.  Finally, Wish ended the spell of silence.

            "It wasn't him."

            "What?" Share and Defender said simultaneously.

            "The one…who attacked me…he looked just like Phoenix, but he wasn't acting like himself at all.  He wouldn't talk to me, except…he seemed really confused, and said he wanted to explain what he'd done, but I think that's why he attacked me; he didn't mean to say that, and he didn't want anyone else to know that.

            "I've always known Phoenix to be honest with me—okay, maybe _too_ honest sometimes—but, well, you heard him just now, Share, didn't you?  What he said sounded like something that Phoenix would say.

            "So yes, Phoenix, I trust you."

            Defender couldn't help but feel a bit captivated by Wish's words.  "Oh, Wish, honey."  However, he remembered that there was action to take.  "Share, are you with us?  Please?"

            It didn't really seem like there was much choice for her anyway.  "Okay, I'm in."

            "Great.  Where are True Heart and Noble Heart?"

            "Probably at the Hall of Hearts by now.  They were calling everyone for an emergency meeting about Def…um, the guy who looks like you."

            "That might not have been such a good move.  If he's got most everyone in one place, and we don't know what he's capable of..."  The white bear's mind raced for any ideas.  Then, he caught a glimpse of himself in the bathroom mirror he fell out of.

            "Hold on.  Guys, did we get that big mirror installed in the Hall of Hearts before all this happened?"

            "Yeah, Phoenix, we did," said Wish.  "Why?"

            "I've got an idea.  I can see my clothes on the bed, which means that look-alike looks just like me right now.  You two, get to the Hall of Hearts right away.  If you see me…er, I mean, the _other_ me…distract him as long as you can.  You'll know when it's really me—trust me."

            Share and Wish looked at each other, and nodded in agreement.  "Okay, we're on our way."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

            By the time the Defender Bear, Share Bear, and Wish Bear had settled their affairs and set off, the remainder of the Care Bear Family (except Take Care Bear and Cheer Bear, who were still tending to Secret Bear) had already gathered within the main room.  Everyone was anxious about the idea of one of their own acting so maverick, and worried for their own safety.

            At this point, True Heart's gavel was useless.  "Please!  Everyone!  Settle down!" she and Noble Heart shouted.  "I see most of us are here; I'd think we'd better start this emergency meeting.  As you're all aware, there have been some rather unfortunate incidents here in the kingdom, and they have all been attributed to one family member, and…"

            "Speaking of Defender Bear, where is he?" inquired True Heart as she looked around the room.

            Her question was answered by a sudden opening of the room's double doors and an icy wind blasting through, followed seconds later by Defender Bear, who was wearing nothing but a fiendish smirk on his face.  And after he stepped inside, the doors slammed themselves shut.

            Once the strong breeze subsided, some of the bears and cousins stood up, readying themselves in case they felt they were threatened.  True Heart did her best to try and come between seemingly quickly-escalating standoff.

            "Everyone, I think it's only fair that Defender Bear has a chance to explain himself," said True Heart as she walked up towards the white bear.  "Now, my friend, you may have heard that there are some very heavy charges against you.  If you have anything to explain to us, now would be the best time.  We're willing to listen to anything you have to say."

            To this, Defender put out one hand in front, and a concentrated burst of wind knocked the elder Care Bear several yards back, sliding to a stop halfway across the large heart-shaped table.  Now, everyone in the room was in an uproar and ready to stare down the rebel.  Defender laughed with contempt.

            "**Fools!**" he shouted.  "You're all fools!  If you're listening to me now, then hear this:  You've all been nothing but annoyances to me!  You've brought nothing but anguish, so now I shall return the favor!  And, there is nothing any of you can do to stop me!"

            "That won't stop us from trying," countered Noble Heart as he pulled True Heart from the table. (Fortunately, she wasn't hurt.)  "I never thought I'd see the day when I would have to order this against a Care Bear, but…Care Bear Family, countdown!  Three, two, one…stare!"

            And so the stares came, some straight at Defender, some arcing over other bears, but alas, none of them hit their mark.  The white bear raised his hand once again, and all the beams were stopped by an invisible wall about five yards out from him.  And, with a wave of his other hand, icicles instantly formed on the ceiling of the hall.  Each about two feet in length, they began to fall all around the bears and cousins.  They scattered to avoid the icy spikes; some of the icicles impaled the grand table, forming deep cracks in it and kicking up splinters.  All the while, "Defender Bear" was enjoying their torment.

            Amidst the confusion, the white bear could hear pounding against the sealed doors.  Eager to see who could be trying to intrude on his task, he waved his hand in front of them, and both Wish Bear and Share Bear fell into the room, with the doors slamming shut again behind them.

            "Well, well," scoffed "Defender", "look who's come late to our get-together."

            "Um, do you think this was enough of a distraction?" Share quietly asked her friend.

            "Not unless you had something else in mind," Wish mumbled back.

            "Defender" looked at the two, and was eager to continue his torment with them.  But, upon seeing Wish again, the surge of emotions, still unknown to him, welled up inside of him again, and he started clutching his head and his heart.  The bear screamed in agony, which in turn, summoned more icy winds inside the hall.

            Managing to keep some of the feelings in check, he snarled at Wish from afar, "I don't know…what it is…you're doing to me, but…but…I won't let…you do this…to me…anymore!  I will…"

            "Defender" stopped mid-sentence.  He looked behind him at the large mirror on the wall.  Had he seen something from…inside it?  He had scattered the other bears and cousins across the room, so no one was near enough to have a reflection.  The bear made to turn away…but there it was again!

            Forgetting everything else, even the foreign emotions, the bear walked up to the mirror.  He saw his mirror image up close, but the terrified looks on the rest of the people with the room.  Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to him.

            "What kind of trick is this?!" he seemed to demand from the mirror.

            His reflection replied…by swinging its arm out and punching him square on him muzzle!

            The bear yelped, and the reflection stuck his outside of the mirror.  "I'd say it's a pretty good trick, if you ask me," it taunted.  It stuck its head back within the mirror, and then jumped out entirely on top of the other bear.

            Every Care Bear and Cousin gasped, as they could not believe they were seeing _two_ Defender Bears wrestling each other on the ground, grappling, struggling, and striking at each other.  They both managed to escape each other's grasp, and now stood a few feet from themselves, both gasping and wearing a determined stare at the other.

            "How can there be two of them??" asked Bedtime aloud.

            "Which one's the real one?" said Proud Heart.

            Both Defenders were speaking at the exact same time.  "I am!"  "No, you're not!"  "Stop that!!"

            "Come on, guys," one Defender spoke alone, "you know it's me here!  We have to stop this impostor!"

            "Me?  _You're_ the impostor," snapped the other Defender, "and you won't get away with it!"

            "Excuse me?!  You can't be the real…uh, me!"

            "Oh yeah?  Only the real Defender can do _this_!"  And, with a lift of his hand, a focused burst sent the other Defender Bear crashing into the mirror, starting a cascade of fragments all around him.  The others yelled, but when the shattering stopped, they could see that he was sitting on the floor against the wall and…smiling!

            "Actually," he said, sounding amazingly unharmed, "the **_real_** Defender Bear…would've realized he had experience with breaking mirrors.

            "And, he'd also know how to do…**this**!"  He held up a large shard of the mirror out in front of him.

_            "Shard of truth, reveal to us the whole truth!"_

            And, with those magic words, the piece of glass began to shine brightly and then emitted an equally intense cone of light, enveloping the other Defender Bear, who had to wrap his arms over his face against such brilliance.  In the midst of the light show, every bear and cousin could see that the bear's fur deepen from white to black, and the shield tummy symbol disappeared from his chest.  They gasped collectively.

            When the light finally subsided, Defender forced a conquering smile.  "It looks like you can't hide from us any more, imposter.  You might as well tell us who you really are, and what the purpose of your scheme was."  The black bear just laughed as he moved his arms and looked around at the Care Bear Family ready to face him.

            "Very well.  I am Shade Foyle, obedient servant to Master No Heart.  My goal was to wreak havoc on you Care Bears and Cousins, and I succeeded.  Hear me, you worthless animals!  My master and I will not stop until you are all destroyed!

"Especially you, Phoenix Audubon!" he said, looking down at the white bear.  "Very soon, we will all meet again!"  Shade laughed once more, but this time, clouds of blinding black smoke burst from nothing, and instantly filled the room.  By the time someone managed to open the door to let the smoke out, Shade Foyle was nowhere to be seen.

"Is it over?" asked Gentle Heart timidly.

"I'm afraid not," replied Defender, still sitting on the floor.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Ugh…this thing makes it hard to scratch my back," Defender Bear griped as he tried to reach an itch underneath his vest.  After Take Care had extracted the bits of glass that were stuck in his back, Defender had to wear a bandage that covered his entire back to protect all the cuts suffered during his encounter with Shade Foyle the day before.

"If it bothers you that much, why don't you just use your magic to make them heal faster?" asked Wish, walking alongside him in the streets of Care-a-Lot city.

"Well, honestly, dear, I feel really bad for Secret Bear.  Doc says he'll make a full recovery, and I don't want to just leave him behind, so to speak.  And, I don't want to fix him up, either; I think he needs plenty of time to recover after this ordeal.  We all do," he finished with a sigh.

"I just can't help but think that all this was all my fault, Wish," Defender continued.  "I mean, of all the Care Bears to imitate, No Heart makes Shade imitate _me_.  And, look at the trouble he caused.  It's a wonder most of them still trust me."

"But it was someone imitating you that did all that, Phoenix," Wish reassured him.  "Even if some of us had doubts…including me...I think you've proven to all of us that you are who you say you are, and you didn't do those terrible things.

"Of course now, I have to ask: is it really you I'm speaking to?"  She giggled.

"Come on, Wish, that's not really funny right now," Defender chided.  "Besides, it's not over yet.  You heard what Shade said.  All we can do now…is wait…"

Phoenix seemed like he had more to say, but up ahead, the two saw Share Bear standing to the side like she had been waiting for them.

"Hey, Phoenix, um, I mean, Defender?" she asked a bit hesitantly.  Her eyes darted to either side, seemingly scanning for passersby.

"Either name is fine, Share.  What is it?"

"Listen, about yesterday…I, uh, I want to apologize about having my doubts about, well…you know."

"Sure, I follow you," said Phoenix.  "Don't go and totally blame yourself, though; I know now why there was misunderstanding, so we're all on the same page now."

"Well, I also just wanted to tell you…um…" Share trailed off.

"Are you all right, Share Bear?" inquired Defender.

"Oh yes, it's just…well, I want you to know that…from now on, I'll trust you.  You know…I think I finally get you.  Well, at least, I can tell your intentions are always good.  So, I'll try be and more of a friend from now on."

Defender gently hugged Share after her confession.  "You always were my friend, Share.  But, I really appreciate this.  Really, I do."

"Thanks.  Well, I'd…better go.  See you guys," and she excused herself and walked off.

"You've got to admire her courage, Wish," said Phoenix after a spat of silence afterwards.  "That wasn't easy for her to say, but good for her that she did."

"I agree.  I'm so happy for Share," she beamed.

"Me, too.  With this ordeal we've got, I feel we're all going to need each other."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Author's Notes:

Project Date: December 25, 2003—April 4, 2004

_Special Thanks To: _"Sun Tzu" for criticism and editing.  Also, to "Swift Heart Rabbit" for inspiration.

_The Care Bears and Care Bears Cousins are the property of American Greetings Corp, Nelvana Ltd, and Those Characters From Cleveland, Inc. No relationship with any of the aforementioned companies is implied by this work._

_The story is the original idea of the author and is not intended to represent any real event. Furthermore, the uses of the characters are not meant to represent any real person, explicitly or implied. Any use of the story, in whole or in part, must not be completed without the prior consent of the author._


	2. Moonlight Shadow

_Of the Same Coin  
_Part Two: Moonlight Shadow

"_The last that ever she saw him,_

_Carried away by a moonlight shadow._

_He passed on worried and warning,_

_Carried away by a moonlight shadow._

_Lost in a riddle that Saturday night,_

_Far away on the other side._

_He was caught in the middle of a desperate fight,_

_And she couldn't find how to push through."_

_--Mike Oldfield, "Moonlight Shadow"_

"Wh…where's Ph…Ph…Phoenix?"

"Shh, don't talk, Wish…she's at 105 degrees, Take Care!"

"Keep that compress on her head cool, Cheer. We've got to get her to my office immediately!"

All Wish could hear was the squealing of wheels, and the panting of two bears. She tried to open her eyes, but everything would start spinning in front of her, and the light hurt her eyes. Wish tried to keep asking the same question: "Where's Phoenix?" But, no one would answer her. She couldn't tell, but they seemed worried about something else. And for some reason, she felt surrounded by heat…

_What's going on?_ Wish wondered. _Why won't anyone answer me? What's happening here? What happened…to Phoenix Audubon?_

_Earlier that day…_

_CLANG! CLANG! "UNGH!" CLANG!_

From outside the Hall of Hearts, the sound of metal striking metal could be heard, with an occasional grunt in between. Wish Bear stepped inside to investigate, though she had a fairly good idea what was causing these sounds. She opened the door marked "Broom Closet", but did not find any brooms. Instead, Wish walked into a gymnasium floor. And in the middle were Defender Bear and Loyal Heart Dog, engaged in a duel of swords.

The two friends swung at each other, and they seemed to match each other in skill. Swing for swing, they matched each other, and with their graceful dodges and tactical parries, the bout seemed even, until Defender started gritting his teeth, and took his sword with both hands. He began to swing even harder, forcing Loyal Heart to defend, until Defender's last upward swing overpowered one of his parries, sending the sword flipping out of Loyal Heart's hand, and the dog to his knees, clutching his wrist in his left hand.

Wish Bear gasped and ran to the cousin's aid. "Are you all right?"d and ran to the cousin'hing his wrist in his left hand.

ered one of his parrys. He began tltaneous ened the doowithin When Defender Bear turned around to see what had happened, he too ran to his friend's aid. However, Loyal Heart waved them both off with his other hand. "I'll be all right, you guys," he said, unstrapping the black wrist guard from his right forearm. "Good thing I started wearing this, or Defender here might have snapped it clean in half," he finished with a chuckle.

"You're sure you're all right?" asked Wish Bear.

Loyal Heart gave his wrist a few shakes and rubbed it for a moment. "Yeah, I think it'll be all right."

"Gosh, Loyal Heart, I'm really sorry about that," Defender apologized.

"Aw, don't sweat it, my friend. As intense as we were sparring, it shouldn't come as a surprise that a strong swing would come across.

"I suppose we can practice again another time. Me, I'm beat. I'll see you two later," Loyal Heart said as he picked himself up and grabbed his belongings before exiting the gym floor.

"Bye," replied Wish and Defender, who was still kneeling on the floor. As soon as the dog departed, the white bear pounded his fist on the floor. "I can't believe I lost it like that!" he exclaimed.

"What happened, dear?" Wish asked him.

"I…I just got…really angry, and not at Loyal Heart. During our sparring, I started to think about that whole ordeal with Shade, and I started blaming myself again, and I just lost all regard for anything else." He sighed heavily.

"Come on, Phoenix. There's no one to blame for what happened."

"I know, Wish, but…I don't know. It's like the more I try to put the thought out of my mind, the more strongly it rushes back in."

"Why don't we go for a walk, then?" Wish offered.

And so, Wish and Defender took a slow stroll through the city and out towards the Forest of Feelings. Neither one said anything, which did hardly any good for either of them.

Wish was the first to speak. "You know, honey, I don't want to sound like I'm putting you down, but you don't have to feel like you're the only one in all of this."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's like you talk as if you're trying to protect all of us on your own. It's a noble cause, don't get me wrong, but I don't want you to forget that we're all a family, and we can all protect each other, even you."

It was true: True Heart and Noble Heart had stepped up the security of Care-A-Lot. Patrols became more frequent; even at night, with other members helping out Bedtime Bear and Bright Heart Raccoon. Situation reports were compiled everyday since the infiltration by the impostor Care Bear. And overall, there was a definite sense of uneasiness in the otherwise tranquil air. At times, a bear or cousin couldn't be seen in the public of Care-A-Lot without wondering if someone thought they were the impostor, or if one of their friends really wasn't.

"I just don't want to make lofty expectations that you can't achieve, she continued. "I think I speak for the rest of us when I say that you've done a great job so far as a Care Bear, and you shouldn't worry yourself deeply about thinking you haven't."

Defender stopped walking. "Wish…" He looked straight into her eyes. It brought him some comfort, but he still felt pangs of doubt. If only he could believe her and just let all his worries go…

The rest of their walk continued in silence (so as not stir up any more emotions), until Wish Bear's Caring Phone started to beep.

_RING-RING-RING! RING-RING-RING!_

Wish's caring phone immediately dispelled the ambience. Slightly dismayed, she answered the call.

"This is Good Luck at the Control Center. We've got a caring mission for you on Earth." Wish turned to Defender. It looked like she didn't want to take this job, but her friend nodded to her and mouthed, "It's okay." So, Wish took drew a breath before answering her phone. "Okay, I'm on my way.

"You're sure you're alright with this, Phoenix?"

"Oh yeah, go ahead," he said with a slightly cheerier expression. "The last thing I want to do is keep you from doing our mission. I'll be fine, don't you worry.

"But, if you want, we could meet at our special place when you get back, and we can talk about what's happened, and stuff."

"Okay, I'll be there," Wish accepted with a smile. "With any luck, I should be back before sundown. See you then."

The two hugged and kissed each other on the cheek. "Take care," said Defender as he waved his love good-bye.

"Aaaagh!!!"

"Failure! How **dare **you return to me defeated!?" No Heart was furious at his pawn, and he was letting Shade know his disgust. With each burst of lightning, No Heart continued to pound the poor bear against the castle wall.

"P-please, Master N-No Heart," Shade pleaded, "Let m-me have another ch-chance! Aagh!!"

Miraculously, the evil sorcerer halted his thrashing. "You want another chance?" he said rhetorically as he paced around his atelier, head slightly tilted up and his left hand on whatever chin hid beneath his cowl.

"Very well. You're lucky I had another plan just in case. But, know this: fail me again, and I'll show you no mercy!"

"I understand, Master No Heart," replied Shade.

With that, No Heart went to one of his spell books and opened it to a bookmarked page. He began to pour several potions and other ingredients into his large cauldron, and let it boil. When it started to bubble, the concoction changed color from brown to deep red.

"Reach in there," snapped No Heart, pointing to the cauldron.

Shade picked himself off the ground and walked towards the bubbling cauldron. The boiling liquid and the fire below made the black bear hesitate, but he slowly slid one of his hands in the brew. To his amazement, it felt rather tepid. He could also feel some solid object within, and put his other hand in to pull it out. When it broke the surface, Shade could see he was holding a large crystal, shaped liked two pyramids joined at their bottom, coming to a point at each end.

"What is this?" he asked aloud.

"This is what you will use to help me get rid of that magical Care Bear. Now, we begin my new plan!"

Wish Bear was flying in her cloud car towards her caring mission: helping a girl named Carla who had just moved into a new neighborhood. She hovered around until she found the quaint, white house that belonged to the girl's family. While her parents were helping the movers unloading their items from the moving truck, Carla was sitting on her porch steps by herself. With her head in her hands, arms propped on her knees, she indeed looked very lonely. Wish walked up to the girl.

"Hi, Carla!" she had cheerily.

Carla's mother turned around to find her daughter standing next to a teal bear with stars on her chest. However, Carla's mother was well aware of the Care Bears and their mission, so she wasn't afraid of the visitor at all.

"Oh, Carla! You have a visitor! And, who might you be?"

"My name is Wish Bear, Mrs..."

"Weathers. You're here for Carla, I take it?"

"She seemed like she needed a friend. So, I've suggested that we all go to the park so Carla can maybe see some of the other children in this neighborhood. I may not be Good Luck Bear, but I'd bet with any luck, she'll make a friend or two. What do you say, Carla?"

"Can we go, Mom?" she asked with spirit in her eyes.

"Sure, it'll be good to take a break from moving. I'm sure your father won't mind staying back to help the movers. We'll leave in a sec."

Mrs. Weathers talked to her husband, and Carla and Wish saw him nod to her, suggesting he was okay with the idea. So Carla and her mother walked down the lane, with Wish Bear not far behind.

The neighborhood park was full of lush green grass. Mostly flat, there were a few hills that pushed up from the ground more wide than tall. There was a section with wood chips on the surface with all of the park equipment--slides, swings, seesaws, and an impressive fort-like play area--where the three girls saw some children that seemed Carla's age playing around. The little girl wanted to point them out to her escorts, but her mother had already taken a seat at a park bench, and Wish Bear had run behind some foliage. Realizing this mild case of abandonment, Carla ran over to join Wish.

"Aren't you coming with me?" she pleaded.

The bear shook her head. "You have to do this on your own, Carla. Besides, you don't need my help. All you need is confidence and courage in yourself. Just be yourself, and I'm certain those other kids will appreciate that and want to get to know you better."

"Well, okay. But, will you wish for a happy ending for me?"

Wish chuckled. "Sure, I will! Now, go introduce yourself." With that, Carla made her way to the playground fort where the other children were playing. She stood there for a few seconds, hoping they'd notice here. When none of them did, she summoned enough courage, and took a deep breath. "Uh, hey guys," Carla called out loudly. Finally, the kids looked down from their perches.

"Who are you?" asked one of the two boys.

"M-my name is Carla. I, uh, just moved into town today."

"You wanna' come up here and play with us?" asked the girl in the fort.

"Really? Yeah, let's play!" Carla climbed up the rope bridge to meet the kids, and they proceeded to get to know each other. Carla learned the names of Jerome, Hannah, and another boy, Rick. She also learned they all lived nearby in the same neighborhood, and they all would go to the same elementary school when it resumed. Mrs. Weathers and Wish Bear were delighted to see the smiling faces on all the kids, including Carla. She was having such a good time she hardly noticed the sun setting in the distance. Her mother came up to the group and said, "Carla, it's time to head back home now. You can see your friends tomorrow, honey."

As Carla and her mother walked home, Wish decided her work was done here. "I'm glad it all worked out for you, Carla," she said.

"Thank you for all your help, Wish Bear," Mrs. Weathers thanked her.

"Yeah, thanks for showing me how special I am," added Carla.

"You're welcome. Have fun at your new school!" And, with that, Wish turned off Carla's street to where she had parked her cloud car. As she went to hop in, she felt someone nearby, and she also thought she could guess who it was.

"You know, you didn't have to follow me. I can take care of myself, silly." She turned around, expecting to see her friend.

But instead, she gasped in horror. "Y…you're not…what are you--!"

As the intense orange sun set across a burning red sky, Defender Bear was starting to grow worried about his loved one. He stood there, alone, at the tree where he and Wish Bear made their promises to each other. He had his left hand over his caring phone, but was hesitating about actually using it. But, he could take the suspense no longer, and yanked it from his hip.

"Defender Bear to Wish Bear," he radioed.

He waited. No response.

"Defender Bear to Wish Bear."

He waited again. Still no response. Looking up to the sky, he was getting very anxious. _Perhaps she's busy_, he thought. _Maybe it isn't anything to fret over…but what if it is?_

"Defender Bear to Hall of Hearts." He waited.

"This is Good Luck Bear. We read you, Defender Bear."

He exhaled. "Has anyone heard back from Wish Bear?"

There was a pause from the other end. "No one here's heard from her since she went on her caring mission. What's up?"

"Um, well…can you guys trace where her cloud car is right now?"

"Well, I suppose I could," replied Good Luck. There was a clattering of keystrokes, and then a faint beep could be heard from Defender's end. "It looks like it's still where she landed it. It hasn't moved since she got there."

Defender remained silent. In the pit of his stomach, something didn't feel right.

"Good Luck," he started, "Maybe it's nothing, but I've got a bad feeling. Can't say why, but…"

"You think something's wrong, pal?"

"I've got nothing to go on, admittedly," Defender replied hastily.

"Why don't you go search her out, and let us know what happens? I'm sure she won't mind that you were worried about her."

"You really think so? Well, all right. I'll definitely let you know. Defender out."

Defender started to walk back towards the city, when an idea struck him on the way. He patted himself down, and found a picture of Wish Bear he remembered he left in one of his vest pockets. In it, she was standing beside her house with a big smile on her face. Looking at it made Phoenix smile as well, but also made the uneasiness grow ever so slightly. He decided he would try his "Reaching Out" spell to try and discern where she was, and maybe get an idea of what, if anything, was going on. He stopped his walk, held the small photograph up to his forehead, closed his eyes, and gathered his thoughts.

"_I am reaching out to a member of my family. Show me the way."_

At first, all Phoenix could "see" in his mind's eye was black. Then, the darkness materialized into a black mist. It enveloped everything, including something within the mist. He couldn't make it out, but he didn't need to; he knew what, or rather, who it was.

Phoenix opened his eyes. Not only did he know where Wish was, but now he was certain she was in danger. He hurried to the runway, jumped into the next available cloud car, and sped off towards the earth below.

Meanwhile, at the end of one city's dead-end streets, surrounded by both abandoned buildings and well-kept trees along the sidewalk, one Care Bear, Wish Bear, was being held captive. She was trapped inside a transparent box twice as tall as she was, and all her pounding on the walls with her fists did nothing to break them. And her captor? Standing next to the box was the one responsible for causing mayhem in peaceful Care-A-Lot; the one whom Wish Bear had earlier mistaken as her true love. It was Shade Foyle. Only now, instead of disguising himself as Phoenix Audubon, he had his true black fur, and he wore an open black leather trench coat, with matching open-fingered gloves. He stood there with his arms crossed, his head slightly tilted upwards, and his gaze firmly set at the night sky above them. He looked to be waiting for something.

"Let me go!" Wish Bear shouted at the black bear. "You'll never get away with this! My family will come for me!"

"That is exactly what I'm expecting," he replied coolly.

"Why do you keep trying to bring us down? I mean, can't you see how much you look like us? And…"

"I am _nothing_ like the lot of you!" Shade snapped back. "It doesn't matter, anyway. I only do what my master orders me to do." However, something about his hostage and what she said aroused confusion just like in the past. Shade closed his eyes and his expression was clearly that of uncertainty. _Could she be right_, he thought to himself. _These feelings keep coming every time I'm around them. Why?_

Unfortunately for Wish Bear, something on its way would make her captor put aside his doubts, as high above them, the murmur of a cloud car could be heard closing in. Phoenix Audubon landed the cloud car about 20 feet from the end of the street, and he hopped out. He was not happy with the day's turn of events, and he was letting Shade Foyle know that with a piercing stare of his eyes.

"So, you've finally come, Defender Bear," the black bear taunted.

"Let her go. Now," was the white bear's stern demand.

"That is not going to happen. Not until I get what I came for." Shade then raised his hands out in front of him, and a black mist poured out of them, enveloping much of the street around the bears. But, Phoenix was not going to fall prey to another ambush. He didn't even flinch as the haze came up to his neck. He stood there, waiting…until reaching behind him.

From seemingly out of nothing, Defender had grabbed a black arm, and from her vantage point, Wish Bear watched as a black jacket came up over Defender, and landed somewhere on the ground with a "Thud!" Defender then started to run towards the box where Wish was being held, but halfway there, she watched him get tripped up and fall underneath the black fog. For a while, she couldn't make anything out among the concealing clouds, but then she caught a flash of purple light, and to her shock, saw Defender being thrown into the foliage of a tree across the street. Shade soon darted out in pursuit, but before he got there, the entire tree suddenly caught fire, and out of it came Defender, spearing his rival and grabbing him around the waist before they both fell back into the haze.

Beginning to feel desperation in this fight, Defender Bear finally had enough of this blinding fog. He focused his magic to summon a mighty wind that spun all around him, pulling the black haze off the street and then pulling it upwards. However, it was only after this veil had lifted did Defender realize that he was now facing the _opposite_ direction of the street.

What happened next for Wish Bear seemed to progress in slow-motion. When the fog lifted, she realized that Shade was standing right next to her, and he started pulling something out of the interior pocket of his trench coat. She pounded on the box wall, yelling as loud as she could, "Look out, Defender!" By that time, though, the black bear had revealed what he had concealed this whole time: a long-barreled, metallic black pistol, pointed straight at Defender's back. Wish continued to try and warn her friend, but she had already heard a "BANG!" three times already. As three purple streaks barreled towards the unsuspecting white bear, Defender finally started to turn around, just in time for the projectiles to strike him in his chest, which were soon followed by three more shots. As Wish Bear watched the pain on Defender's face, she knew had to do something. She activated her stare against one of the walls of the box, and put every ounce of energy she had into it. The wall finally began to crack, until the whole box shattered around her. Wish covered her eyes with her forearm as she ran to help her friend, who had already started to fall backwards. She got there just in time to catch his head in her lap. Defender's normally white fur now several trails and splotches of red as the blood wept from his wounds. Wish Bear could not hold back the tears welling up. As she sobbed for her friend, she felt a gloved hand reach back to stroke her.

"Don't…cry, honey" Defender said, trying to console his friend despite his predicament. He tried to suppress his moans from the intense pain. "Everything…will be…fine."

"Sorry to disappoint you, but that won't be the case for you." Wish Bear looked up, and saw Shade walking towards them with apathetic, remorseless eyes.

"Stay away from us!" she pleaded.

"Not before I finish my task." He looked down at his palms for a moment, and out of nowhere appeared the double-pointed crystal given to him by No Heart earlier. "With this crystal, I will take your soul!" Shade held the crystal with one hand above him, so that it caught as much of the light from the full moon as possible. The crystal then started to glow blue itself, and them emitted a streak of blue light upon the two bears beneath him. It didn't seem to affect Wish in any way, but she started to hear Defender shout out in agony. In front of him, a white, vaporous outline of him started to materialize, and when it was finished, it was pulled into the crystal, which had now gone from being empty on the inside to housing a swirling pale white fluid.

Suddenly, Wish felt her friend's body turn cold very quickly, and he no longer moaned. "Defender?! Defender, please! Wake up!" she shook him, but there was no response.

"My task is complete. I shall leave you like you had repeatedly asked me to," said Shade in the same heartless tone of voice. Crystal and soul in hand, he began to float away into the night sky. Wish Bear started to panic; she had to do something to get back Defender's soul, so she first used her stare to send a distress signal back towards Care-A-Lot. Then, she put Defender's arm across her shoulders, and carried him to the cloud car he came in, laid him in the back seat, and set out to pursue Shade Foyle. As she began to close in, the black bear looked back on his follower. For a moment, looking at the devotion she was giving to that other bear made him wish that someone would care for him like that. But, he quickly passed on that notion. "What a foolish creature," he muttered before tucking the soul crystal under one of his arms, and pulling out his handgun again and firing at the car behind him. Wish did her best maneuver out of the way, but one shot ricocheted off her windshield before the next one grazed her left arm just beneath her shoulder. She winced and covered the injury with her right hand, but doing her best to continue to give chase. Up in front of both Shade and Wish was a huge cloud bank. Shade flew in; Wish did her best to stay on him, but when she came out of it, Shade Foyle was nowhere to be seen. She stopped in mid-air.

She had lost him.

Realizing she was out of options, she let her head fall on the steering wheel, and began to cry again, for herself and for Defender Bear. She almost didn't notice the sound of another cloud car and some rainbow rollers and other Care Bears and Cousins came in response to the distress signal. Harmony Bear was the first to reach her. She asked, "What happened, Wish Bear?"

"I…I lost him," was all she could say.

Elsewhere, someone who had been invisible for some time made himself visible. The interesting part about it: Shade Foyle didn't know he could become invisible. He had no idea he could perform such a technique. _Where did I learn such a thing_, he wondered. He looked down at the crystal under his arm.

"Do you have something to do with this?" he asked the soul within the crystal. "Do you know something? Tell me!"

To his surprise, the crystal suddenly started to shine with an intense white light. And then, an image could be seen. Shade could see the castle of his master, No Heart, and saw him and the white bear whose soul he had just captured engaged in a showdown. It looked like his master was primed to defeat his opponent, but he watched as the white bear's hands began to glow with spheres of intense light; much like the one the crystal had given off. "LEAVE THEM ALONE!!!!!!" the white bear shouted, and the spheres exploded into a huge beam aimed straight at No Heart, who could not hold back such power for long. The wizard's body was reduced to an amorphous mass of black which managed to make its way against the bear's magic and dragged itself across the bear before streaking off out of the castle.

The next thing Shade knew, he was floating in the middle of the night sky again, the crystal no longer shining. The black bear was thoroughly mystified by what had just happen. _What did I just see? A premonition? A past memory? But, whose was it? _He looked down at the crystal again. This time, however, he received no noticeable response. Shade decided he had better get this back to his master as soon as possible. And so, with questions still floating in his mind, he continued his flight back to the castle.

_At present time…_

In the atelier of his castle, the fiendish sorcerer, No Heart, was enjoying his latest prize. With the crystal holding Defender Bear's soul sitting on his table, he could just imagine what sadness the Care Bears must be going through.

Beastly, on the other hand, was merely fascinated by the swirling movements with the crystal. "Uh, boss? What are you going to do with that…lava lamp thing?"

"This 'lava lamp thing', you dolt, will provide me with additional power, once I steal the magical energies from his soul. With that much, **no one** will be able to stop me! Ha-ha-ha-ha-hah!!!"

While Beastly seemed happy for his master (as it meant that he would probably avoid being zapped in the near future), Shade Foyle, leaning along one of the cold stone walls, didn't share in the lackey's excitement. Instead, he kept an eye on the crystal. As far as he was concerned, he was still due some time with that crystal for himself. But, for now, it was in No Heart's possession. And right now, he was turning the pages of one of his archaic tomes. When he found the incantation he was looking for, the sorcerer put a bony finger on it, and began to chant in some unintelligible tongue. Holding his other hand above the crystal, when the chanting became louder, his hand and crystal began to pass what looked like small blue lightning bolts between each other. The light show lasted for several minutes, until both the lights and the chanting stopped. Nobody said a word until No Heart suddenly slammed his fist on his book and roared in discontent.

"Buh-boss?" stammered Beastly. "Did you get the power?"

"NO, you stupid fool! Even without a body, this Care Bear continues to defy me! I couldn't siphon away any of his magic! Unbelievable!!" Beastly did his best to back away slowly from No Heart's tirade. Unfortunately, he managed to find one of the legs of the table the sorcerer was working on. Beastly fell over it, causing a great clatter on top, including the crystal, which had rolled off the edge. No Heart yelled at Beastly to save it, but he merely stumbled over himself this time. Amazingly, the crystal didn't shatter on the floor; instead, it slowed and hovered an inch or two off the ground. No Heart looked around, and saw that Shade was holding his hand straight out towards them, all the while with his eyes closed and still leaning against the wall.

"Whew…good thing he saved the crystal, huh boss?" Beastly blurted out. To which the wizard simply replied by screaming furiously and stamping out of his atelier. Beastly, meanwhile, decided to scurry out the other door. This left Shade Foyle in the situation he was hoping for—alone with the crystal and a chance to study it further.

In Care-A-Lot, True Heart Bear and Noble Heart Horse were at Take Care Bear's clinic, where the rescue party had brought back Defender Bear, with Wish Bear in the bed next to him.

"He's not dead, believe it or not," said Take Care, flipping through papers attached to his clipboard. "After I cleaned and dressed his injuries, they started to heal at an accelerated rate. He still has a pulse and he's breathing, though both are weak. All of which is so surprising since his core body temperature is below optimal."

True Heart peeked into the room. "And Wish?"

"Well, when you guys brought her in here, she had developed quite a fever. It's already broken, but she hasn't fully recovered her strength yet. I recommend she rest, as well."

"What can we do to help him?" asked Noble Heart.

Take Care looked up at both of them. "From what I've heard, Defender's 'soul' was stolen. Now, I can't exactly diagnose that as his ailment. But, in any case, whatever got taken, he needs it back."

"Well then, it looks that's just what we'll have to do," True Heart concluded. "We'll have to assemble a team to sneak into No Heart's castle and grab the crystal that's got Defender's soul."

Share Bear, who had been in the room where Defender was "resting", volunteered herself. "I'll go," she said. "That way, Wish can stay here and--"

"I'm going, too."

The fours bears all turned around at the sound of the commitment, and saw Wish Bear sit up on her bed.

"Wish, what are you--?" Share started to ask.

"Phoenix is this way because he tried to save me. As his friend, I think I owe it to him that I at least try to do the same for him."

"Wish, that's simply out of the question," Take Care told her sternly. "I can't just let you walk out of my clinic in your condition."

"Please, Take Care. I'll be strong, for myself, for Phoenix…for all of us."

In No Heart's castle, Shade Foyle was staring into the crystal's churning contents. His soul felt as tempestuous as the one trapped inside the glass cage. With trepidation, the black bear started to speak to the captive.

"I'm…pretty sure you can hear me in there," he said to the crystal. "And, I think you know something…about me. Ever since I first encountered your kind, I get this…strange feeling, and I don't know what it is, but…but it feels…warm…and…good...

"What do you know about me? Tell me!"

At first, Shade didn't notice any kind of response from the stolen soul. He began to lose hope again, but the crystal started to glow again. And, another scene was played out. Again, it appeared to be occurring No Heart's castle, but this time, only the evil sorcerer was seen. He was standing over his cauldron, seemingly in the midst of brewing some kind of sinister mixture. Soon enough, the green liquid began to boil, and something could be seen emerging from the brew. It was…Shade Foyle himself.

The scene stopped and the light faded. But, the shock of what the black bear had just witnessed had not diminished at all. He hastily set the crystal back on the table, and started to step away from it.

"Was that…my origin?" he said aloud. He had never thought about where he came from. _If what I've just seen is true_, he thought, _then I'm…I'm…_

"What **am** I!?" he shouted.

Wish Bear had succeeded in convincing Take Care Bear, True Heart Bear, Noble Heart Horse, and Share Bear to let her join the group. So she, Share, Proud Heart Cat, and Playful Heart Monkey where all riding a cloud car through the pre-dawn sky. Though they all knew it would be a harrowing experience (as is any time one wanders around the castle of a wicked sorcerer), the four knew that they had to what they could to rescue Defender Bear's soul. With the castle in sight, they decided to enter through one of the mid-level windows, and make their way to where the crystal was being held.

"Um, I don't mean to be a worrywart," Proud Heart spoke up, "but, does anybody know exactly _where_ in the castle this crystal is?" The other three looked at her, then at each other, with uncertain faces.

"Oh well, I suppose we'll have more time to see what kind of 'sprucing up' No Heart's done to the place," she quipped.

The nearest stairs were one of the many staircases within the horrible halls. The four decided to take them all the way up. At the top, there was someone waiting for them. It was Shade Foyle, only he didn't look like he was actually waiting for anyone. Instead, he was sitting on the last step, his forearms lying across his lap, his head drooping, eyes closed. This was the bear that had caused so much trouble, but he hardly seemed to be in any mood to cause mischief, or do much else, for that matter. No one moved or said anything at first, until…

"If you're looking for your friend's soul, it's the room behind me," came the listless statement from the sad foe.

"Do we believe him?" asked Share Bear.

"As the unofficial king of mischief of Care-A-Lot," said Playful Heart, "I don't think this is a trick. Just my hunch." The four decided to take their chances, and carefully walked past Shade, expecting to be ambushed, but they weren't. Instead, they found themselves in the middle of No Heart's atelier. And, sure enough, Wish Bear recognized the soul crystal on top of one of the cluttered tables. The top of it was much higher than any of them, so Share Bear ended up having to hoist Playful Heart on her shoulders (as Proud Heart objected to having her fur mussed up). As they teetered around while Wish and Proud Heart kept watch for any sign of Beastly or No Heart, Playful Heart managed to reach out and get a hold of the crystal. Unfortunately, the added weight made him lose his balance. He lost his grip on the crystal, and to everyone's horror, it shattered on the floor with a loud "Crash!" Then, they all watched the soul that had been trapped in it quickly dart outside through the nearest window.

"Well, I…suppose that answered my question of 'How are we going to get it out of there?'" said Wish Bear half-jokingly.

"I'm more worried if somebody actually heard that," said Proud Heart.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?!"

"Does that answer your question, Proud Heart?" Share exclaimed. Indeed, No Heart was now at one of the archways to his atelier, and his red eyes were aglow with rage. Suddenly, the room became very cold; the bears and cousins were certain this was No Heart's doing. They looked around for an exit, but the doors and windows began to fill up with ice, effectively sealing them in with the wicked wizard. No Heart had also summoned some of his menacing shadows; they began to form and crawl across the walls, advancing towards the group, when the ice on one of the windows began to shine brightly, before exploding in a shower of icy shards. And, standing in the threshold, with the piercing rays of the dawning sun behind him…was Defender Bear.

No one in the room could believe it, especially Wish Bear. But, there he was, holding one side of his cloak across him, the other holding onto the castle window.

"You!" shouted No Heart.

"Yup, it's me," replied Defender. "I've got a quick question for you, No Heart.

"What makes a shadow go away? Give up? The light!!!" And with that, a great burst of light, even brighter than the sun, flooded the atelier. And, once it dimmed away, none of the bears were to be found.

Later that morning, after they had all returned safely to Care-A-Lot, he had a chance to let them in on a secret.

"Okay, first, I need to scratch this bandage," he said. Underneath his cloak, his entire chest, tummy symbol and all, was covered by a large piece of gauze. "First my back, now my front. Doc, you really need to get less itchy gauze next time."

"I'll make a note of it," he replied, pretending to jot something on his clipboard.

"So, that's why you were holding your cloak like you were some kind of vampire, honey," joked Wish, quickly following with a tight embrace.

Defender chuckled. "Something like that, I suppose. But now, it's time to get serious. I need to let you all know something. When I was trapped in that crystal, No Heart tried to steal my magic powers from me. I did my best to resist him, but I also realized something: during his spell, I could read his thoughts. Most of them were horrible, cruel images, but one of his memories was of something that happened only recently. It was that of the time he created Shade Foyle. It was then that I realized something about him."

"What's that?" said Wish.

"He…is me."

Down on Earth, on a small, uninhabited isle, someone was standing, watching the tide rise and fall back to the ocean. Shade Foyle felt no closer to the answers he was searching.

As the ocean breeze rushed by, the black bear spoke into it. "We will meet again, Phoenix Audubon. You will help me find the truth, one way or another…"

Author's Notes:

Project Date: August 8—December 30, 2004

Special Thanks To: "Swift Heart Rabbit" for criticism and editing.

_The Care Bears and Care Bears Cousins are the property of American Greetings Corp, Nelvana Ltd, and Those Characters From Cleveland, Inc. No relationship with any of the aforementioned companies is implied by this work._

_The story is the original idea of the author and is not intended to represent any real event. Furthermore, the uses of the characters are not meant to represent any real person, explicitly or implied. Any use of the story, in whole or in part, must not be completed without the prior consent of the author._


	3. Truth Hurts

_Of the Same Coin  
_Part Three: Truth Hurts

"_Amor, no es amor, (if this ain't love)  
__than what am I feeling,  
__what am I doing wrong?  
__Amor, no es amor (if this ain't love)  
__Is this an illusion  
__that I have in my heart?"  
__-Frankie J  
_

"Just what exactly do you mean by 'he is you'?" True Heart Bear asked Defender Bear. She and Noble Heart Horse had overheard the white bear's hypothesis as they were walking into Take Care Bear's clinic. Defender looked around a few times.

"Would you mind if I explain this somewhere more private, like my place?" Defender suggested. "I can walk on my own, honest."

"Yes, that's fine," said Noble Heart. So the three plus Wish Bear walked out of the clinic towards Defender's house. They saw two other family members on the way there. They waved, and the group waved back, trying to appear as if nothing was out of the ordinary, though Defender kept his cloak closed to hide the bandage on his chest. When they arrived there, the white bear locked the door and drew the curtains closed.

"Okay, here goes. Now, I was telling Wish over there about how I could read No Heart's memories. To be honest, it actually began before that. Apparently, not having a body affords someone a greater awareness of things; not that I recommend that to anyone, mind you all.

"Anyways, while I was trapped in that crystal and being taken to No Heart's castle, I could sense some confusion in Shade Foyle. I could discern that being around us bears and cousins makes him feel uneasy. But, it's not from abhorrence of us. No, something about us seems familiar to him, as if he might belong here. That, of course, goes against everything I'm sure No Heart has conditioned him with. Well, I wanted to convince Shade that what he was doing was wrong, and so I brought up the memory of the first time I had fought with No Heart some time ago, and I tried my best to "project" it to Shade.

"And, what happened?" questioned Noble Heart.

"Oh, I could tell he got the message, although it only made him more confused. And, it didn't stop me from being taken to the castle. That was where No Heart tried to steal my magical powers for his own."

"You said you could read his thoughts, right, Phoenix?" asked Wish Bear.

"Yeah. I wasn't in any rush to give No Heart any of _my_ memories, or my magic, for that matter. But, when he tried to steal my magic powers from me, that when I noticed that whatever incantation he was using left him very vulnerable. I was in condition to take advantage of that, obviously. But, that was when I noticed that I could 'see' into his mind."

"You saw his memories," said Noble Heart.

"Uh-huh, and most of them were horrible. I could see many of the times he tortured humans, took away their feelings, made them hostile, and him taking great satisfaction in all of it. I almost stopped looking out of disgust, until I saw one of his more recent memories. He was in his atelier, with something cooking in his cauldron. He was about to add something to that mixture, and that's when I knew I found something."

"What was he adding?" asked True Heart.

"Me. Or a piece of me, to clarify. You see, when I first fought No Heart, the last attack I used—that immense beam—it was so draining that it left me too tired to do much else. Like, for example, notice when No Heart had been beaten, he managed to steal some of my 'essence' before he fled his castle."

Noble Heart inquired, "And, by 'essence', you mean your soul?"

Phoenix had to think for a moment. "I…suppose, but I'm not certain; that was a separate memory. In any case, once he added that last ingredient, well, out popped Shade."

"I suppose No Heart's logic was that if he could make a clone of me with just a little bit of my essence, he figured he could do a lot more damage with the rest of me. Literally."

"What happened to Shade?" asked Wish.

"Oh, right. Well, after Beastly almost dropped my crystal, I got saved by Shade when he levitated the crystal before it hit the floor. I could tell No Heart was taken by surprise. It was like he didn't think Shade was capable of that kind of magic; and that made me think. As if I could do much else.

"Anyhow, Beastly ran off, and No Heart angrily stomped out of the atelier, which left Shade alone with me. He said that I knew something about him—which I now did, and he really wanted me to show him."

"And, did you, Defender?" True Heart posed the question.

Phoenix sighed. "Yes. I projected the same memory I saw to him."

"What happened?" asked Noble Heart.

"Well, I thought he was confused to begin with, but this last tidbit of information really threw him for a loop! He shouted, 'What **am** I?' like he didn't know where he came from. Which, I believe, _was_ what set him off. Apparently, No Heart never told Shade that he was a clone of his hated enemy.

"That must be a shock, though: realizing that you came from a magical soup, more or less." The others nodded in agreement.

"We found Shade sitting at the top of some stairs in No Heart's castle," Wish added to the story. "And, instead of attacking us, he told us where the crystal with Defender in it was."

"Still reeling from that revelation, I expect," Noble Heart pondered while stroking his chin.

"Where is Shade now?" True Heart asked both Wish and Defender. Wish shook her head. "Do you know, honey?"

"That I don't know. Admittedly, I was concerned more about getting the five of us out of there unharmed. Although I'm willing to wager that now that Shade knows, it could cause some friction between him and No Heart."

"Let's hope that'll keep them from causing any more mischief," said Noble Heart. Both he and True Heart stood up.

True Heart said, "We're going to leave, Defender, so you can rest. And, I want to tell you that we really appreciate your help in all of this."

Defender smiled. "Sure, anything to help the family, right?" He turned to Wish. "Are you staying much longer?"  
"Just a bit more, then I have other things to attend to," she replied.

That night, Phoenix Audubon had a dream. He could see the vast expanse of an ocean, with a bright orange setting sun flooding the waters. The dream seemed to be leading him towards a small island—an atoll, surrounded by a coral reef. It seemed to be uninhabited, until Defender Bear was led to one end of the beach. Someone was standing there on the sand of the shore, the water almost at his feet. The figure had his back towards Defender, but with a Care Bear's body, black fur, and a leather trench coat and open-fingered gloves, the figure was unmistakable.

And, while he remained silent, two words seemed to resound through the tropical scene:

"_Find me."_

Phoenix Audubon awoke, sitting straight up on his bed and panting hard. He put his hand over his face. Was it just a dream?

"Or, was he trying to reach out to me," he though aloud, "as I had reached out when I was looking for somewhere to belong." Suddenly, Defender realized it was more than a dream—he knew where the scene in his dream came from. He jumped out of bed, threw off his nightgown and cap, put on his shorts, vest, and gloves, tore off the bandage over his tummy symbol, grabbed a few other "essentials", pulled his red-and-blue cloak around, and had just finished locking its clasp before he swung his door open to step out. However, someone was standing right at Defender's doorstep.

"Wish?"

"I had a dream," she said solemnly.

"Did it have anything to with seeing Shade Foyle standing on an island?" inquired Defender.

This made Wish's eyes widen a bit. "Y-yes, but how did you—"

"I had the exact same dream. Which also means I bet you know where Shade is, as well."

Wish thought about it for a second. "I…I do."

"Shall we be off, then?"

Wish gave him a surprised look. "What, you mean now? What if it's a trap?"

Defender shook his head. "Judging from the tone of that dream, and the way you described him at the castle, I'm not sure he wants to fight us anymore. It sounds like to me he needs help, and that's what we Care Bears do, right?"

Wish Bear sighed. "If I was to disagree with you, you'll probably sneak away by yourself, won't you?" she finished with a smile.

The white bear exaggerated a thoughtful pose. "Probably," he retorted with a wink.

"All right, then. Let's head off to the runway." The two set off that way. At the center of town, outside of the Hall of Hearts, they ran into Bedtime. "Rather late for a date, wouldn't you two say?" he said upon seeing the two.

Defender and Wish both looked at each other. "Um, that's...not it, my friend," replied Defender.

"You see, Bedtime," Wish explained, "Defender Bear and I had a dream about Shade Foyle. We think he was trying to ask us to find him."

"And, you know where he is?" asked a slightly skeptical Bedtime.

The pair looked at each other again, this time their faces a tad wrinkled from uncertainty.

"Well, it's kind of hard to explain," Wish started. Just then, Defender looked up from his thinking pose. "Actually, I think I can show you, Bedtime. Follow me." Bedtime and Wish followed him into the Hall of Hearts, and eventually towards the control center. Defender sat down at one of the consoles, entered some keystrokes, and brought a map of the earth on the room's gigantic viewing screen. He then picked up a stylus, put the tip on the monitor in front of him, which also had a world map on it, and closed his eyes. Slowly, he moved the stylus towards the left side of the map, which corresponded to Earth's western hemisphere.

He called out, "Here," tapped the monitor with the stylus, and opened his eyes. The three bears looked at the flashing red dot that was now on the screen, which was located very close to the intersection of the Equator and the International Date Line. "That's where Shade is."

While Wish nodded in agreement, Bedtime reached over Defender's shoulder and pressed some keys. "Uh, Defender, do you what that area is?"

"No."

"Well, believe it or not, that dot is located within—get this—the Phoenix Islands."

"What?" Wish and Defender turned towards Bedtime, surprised.

"That's what the computer says. You think it's just coincidence?"

"I doubt it," replied Phoenix, "but I can't say if Shade also realizes the link. I suppose we can ask him that when we see him.

"Say, Bedtime? Did you want to come along with Wish and me? I don't expect there to be any fighting, but we could sure use the help in case it isn't a peaceful meeting."

"Sure," said Bedtime. The three left the marked map on the screen, and added a message box explaining the situation. Defender, Wish, and Bedtime made their way towards the flight line, where there was a cloud car ready for flight. Defender and Wish sat in front, Bedtime in back, and they took off for the Phoenix Islands.

Just before daybreak, the cloud car had reached its destination. The small, flat, sandy isle had only a few coconut palm trees dotting the landscape. From above, they had seen the entire island (but too far to make out any specifics, such as one lone bear), and Defender Bear and Wish Bear decided to land on the opposite side of the island where the dream sequence took place. Together, the three began to walk to the other side at a pace slightly slower than normal. They looked at each other with concerned looks the entire distance.

Phoenix was first to sense the presence of Shade Foyle on the island, even though neither he, nor Wish, nor Bedtime was still unable to spot him. To Defender, nothing he felt seemed as if they were walking into a trap. A short distance later, Wish Bear pointed out ahead of the group.them. Against a slightly brightening sky, they could make out the silhouette of someone standing at the edge of the shoreline. The three bears slowed down even more and tried to be silent, yet the individual kept his back towards them. Once they got closer, Defender held up an arm to stop Wish and Bedtime. At that point, all of them could see Shade Foyle looking out to the ocean.

"You came," said Shade in an empty tone, still facing away from his three visitors.

"Well, that's what you wanted us to do…wasn't it?" replied Phoenix, a little tremulous. He was hoping he could come up with the right words to say to Shade to assure him he was here to help him.

Shade did not answer. Even though dawn was still an hour or so away from them, the ocean breeze was warm, and it softly whistled past all of them. Eventually, the black bear did turn to look at Defender, Wish, and Bedtime with an expressionless face.

"Tell me, Phoenix Audubon. Has everything you've shown me…is it all true?"

"Y-yes, to the best of my knowledge." The fact that Shade was staring at Defender with cold, empty eyes made him feel uncomfortable, no matter how much he wanted to help. Finally, though, Shade closed his eyes, seemingly in acceptance.

"Then, that's it. I'm nothing more than a clone of you."

"Don't say that!" Phoenix found himself blurting out. "Listen, just because your past may have been a bit shady—no pun intended—that doesn't mean you don't have a purpose."

"My sole purpose was to destroy you. What would I do without a purpose?" in the same empty voice. "If I choose not to destroy you, I will have nowhere to go, nowhere to belong to."

"Well," Defender started, looking back at Wish and Bedtime, "that's what we are here for. If you'll let us help you, we could help you find a new purpose."

Shade turned his head slightly. "After all the distress I have caused you…all of you…I couldn't possibly expect you to just disregard it all like that."

"I think that just proves how little you really know about us," Bedtime joined in. "But, I'm sure we'd be more than happy to introduce you to the rest of us, and get to know us better. Right, guys?"

Wish Bear nodded. "No Heart cares about no one. Not Beastly…and probably not you, either. He will only cause you grief. And, none of us wants that to happen to you. Please, Shade, please let us help you."

Shade stood silent. No one could tell if he was thinking, or if their words had moved him. _He must have been made so that he wouldn't have feelings, or emotions_, thought Defender to himself. _No wonder he's so confused. Poor guy._

"I will go with you," Shade finally answered. "But, not before one task is accomplished."

"What is it?" asked Wish Bear.

"Before I truly believe all that you have said, Phoenix Audubon, you must first fight and defeat me, right here on this island."

"What?" exclaimed Defender, Wish, and Bedtime. Shade moved his right arm behind him, as if reaching for something. When he brought it back out, he was now holding a wooden spear slightly taller than he was, topped by a curved, shining blade. He put it in both hands, and held it so that the tip was pointed towards Defender Bear.

"He's not serious, is he?" Bedtime asked aloud.

"But why, Shade?" Phoenix pleaded. "There's no need to fight at all. I have no reason to tell you lies. Why would you want this?"

The empty gaze and tone continued to float from the black bear. "Because something about fighting feels necessary. It feels…right. Don't you feel it?"

In truth, Phoenix felt the same way, even if it seemed to contradict that which the Care Bear Family has taught him. Still, he would not let a chance to bring Shade Foyle to their side slip away.

Phoenix sighed disappointedly. "Very well, Shade. If that's what you really want, I shall oblige." The white bear reached underneath his red-and-blue cloak, and pulled out his compacted metal staff. It glowed for a moment, and became full-length.

"Not that," said Shade. "The other one."

Wish Bear looked at Defender. "What does he mean by 'other one'?"

Defender did not reply. He was keeping his eyes on Shade the whole time. He held out his staff in front of him, and it shrunk back to its original side, and he tucked it back into his clothes. Then, he reached over to the left side of his cloak, and slowly started to draw something out. It turned out be his silver sword.

"I didn't know he brought that with him," Bedtime said in surprise. "Did you, Wish?" She slowly shook her head. _I just hope he knows what he's doing_, she thought to herself.

_I hope I know what I'm doing_, Defender thought to himself. The chance to change his mind was cut short, however, once Shade Foyle had swiftly charged at the white bear and swung his spear at him with great might. Defender had just managed to parry the strike by holding his sword at the hilt and near the tip of it. (He was fortunate he was wearing his gloves at that point.) The two struggled against the other's pressure, until Defender pulled his shoulder to sidestep, and let Shade's own momentum force him forward. The black bear stumbled, but kept his footing. Shade quickly turned and continued to strike at Phoenix, who kept up his defense, but didn't counterattack. Phoenix couldn't help but notice that as strong as Shade's blows were, the look in his eyes weren't that of anger, or even determination. They were both empty and full of sadness at the same time.

"Why does…this feel…natural…if I've never…done this before?" Shade posed the question between strikes.

"I know how that feels, if that's what you're wondering," Defender replied hastily, "but I don't know the answer myself."

As the melee went on, Wish Bear and Bedtime Bear were watching the two bears fight from a safe distance.

"Shouldn't we try to stop them?" asked Wish.

"How? I don't think it would be safe for either of us to step between them," Bedtime cautioned. "Maybe Shade will be more receptive after a fight?"

"My stars, I hope you're right."

The clanging of sword and spear continued for quite some time, until finally, Phoenix decided that if he wanted a good chance at Shade's attention, he had better do more than just block his aggressor's swipes. When he dodged one of the black bear's swings, he saw his chance. Phoenix took his sword with both hands, and swung down, over his head, as hard as he could. He brought it down over the shaft of the spear with such force that it cleaved it into two. Shade answered by charging with his shoulder into Phoenix, knocking the bear onto the ground and his sword out of his hands. Phoenix got himself up, and both white and black bear stood there, watching for any sudden moves from the other.

"Are we finished here?" Defender called out to Shade. "Do you believe me now?" To this, Shade zipped towards him (about almost as fast as he could blink), arms reaching out for Defender's throat. However, Defender managed to grab Shade's wrists and keep them from his neck. Quickly grabbing one wrist with both of his hands, Defender pulled the black bear over his shoulder onto the ground, and pinned him there by holding down on his elbows.

"Please, Shade!" Defender pleaded with his opponent. "Enough already!" This was greeted by a double-footed kick-out by the black bear to Defender's chest, pushing him off and down to the sandy ground.

"Don't give up, Defender!" encouraged Bedtime. "You can…" He turned to Wish. "Wait, we don't wait _either_ of them to get hurt, right?"  
"I think that's Phoenix's plan, yes," answered Wish, though sounding not at all certain.

Both Phoenix and Shade got up slowly, panting heavily. Phoenix looked like he was ready for this to be over at any moment. But, Shade's face was just as emotionless as before, giving no clue as to his satisfaction or acceptance. Instead, his hands began to glow an ice blue, and waved them towards Phoenix. This made five large, pointed shards of ice appear and start to fly towards the white bear. Phoenix countered with a wave of his hand, which sent a fiery crescent to the ice shards. When they made contact, the shards melted and splashed onto the sand.

_Oh, you've **got** to be kidding me_, Defender whined to himself. _Why can't he just believe me? Even I think this fight's pointless by now…_But Defender wouldn't let himself simply give up. He suddenly leapt high into the air and then dove towards Shade. The two tumbled towards the ground, quickly turned towards the other, grabbed one another's arm, and simultaneously pulled something from within each other's clothes.

Wish and Bedtime were both shocked at the mirror image they were witnessing. Both Phoenix Audubon and Shade Foyle were now holding duplicate long-barreled handguns—one silver, one black—in front of the other's face. Neither one made a move; they both held this position until Phoenix slowly cracked a smile.

"Let me guess, Shade," he began to say, "You weren't really sure what you had when you conjured that thing in your hand, but somehow it felt necessary, right? Just like you thought it was necessary to bring it with you here." Shade didn't say anything, but his eyes widened a bit—the first look of emotion from the black bear.

"I bet you don't even realize where you are, do you? Take a look around you, Shade. This is one of the Phoenix Islands. Now, don't you think it's funny that you were waiting for me at this place with the same name as me? I'm sure even now, you don't think it's just coincidence, do you?"

"How do you know all this?" Shade's empty tone belied the onset of confusion.

"Heh, sometimes, I wish I knew. Nevertheless, I trust my feelings, and so should you." With that, Phoenix slowly holstered his firearm.

"So, what do you say? Will you give us a chance?"

The silence continued. And then, the sun finally broke over the horizon, the first rays of daylight pouring over the small island. And at the same time, Shade put his weapon away, too. Both he and Phoenix let out a deep sigh.

"Yes, I guess if you fought this hard to convince me, it must be true," Shade finally confessed. Bedtime Bear and Wish Bear ran to join them when it looked like things were finally resolved.

"So, what's going to happen now?" asked Bedtime.

"I think all of us—even you, Shade—need to get back to Care-A-Lot and sort all of this out. There's much to discuss; I hope you're ready to open up."

Shade nodded. "Yes, yes, I'll help any way that I can. And, I just want to tell you, Phoenix, that I'm really sorry for everything that I've caused."

Defender chuckled softly. "I'm sure you are, but we can settle that later. Let's go."

"But, why end such a touching moment?"

The four bears gasped at the sudden taunt; they all recognized that voice. Everyone looked around to find where it came from.

"AAAAAH!"

Something bright and purple hit Defender Bear from behind, and it flung him several feet ahead, sliding on the coarse sand. Wish Bear and Bedtime Bear saw what happened and went to go help Defender, but a cold, strong wind blasted up and tossed them as well. Defender tried to get up by himself, but found he was being pinned face-down at his wrists. He managed to turn his head to one side and saw that there was a transparent purple manacle locking him into the sand. He could feel them at his ankles, as well. Defender tried to look up.

"Shade! No!"

But, Shade was being restrained by the evil sorcerer, No Heart. Shade struggled to free his arms from the bony grip to no avail.

"Well, well, well, Care Bears," the wizard baited, "it seems you found my wayward assistant. I would thank you, if I weren't intent on destroying you all!"

"Let him go, No Heart!" Defender screamed at No Heart as he continued to struggle.

"After all the work I had to make him, you think I'd simply **give** him up? Ha! You bears are more deluded that I thought! I intend to get everything he's worth from him!"

"No!" Shade continued to resist. "I don't want to help you anymore!"

"You don't have a say in this. Now, be quiet!" Shade was hit by a purple flash that ran from No Heart's hands. He yelped, and then, his head drooped. No Heart let out a wicked cackle, turned himself into a tornado, and flew off into the sky.

Once the sorcerer had left, the purple shackles on Defender Bear had also disappeared, and he quickly got to his knees. By then, Wish and Bedtime had just gotten back from their 'flight'.

"Where'd they go, Phoenix?" Wish asked him.

Phoenix Audubon pounded the sand with his fist.

"I lost him," he moaned.

Author's Notes:

Project Date: January 6—February 21, 2005

Special Thanks To: "Swift Heart Rabbit" for criticism and editing.

The Care Bears and Care Bears Cousins are the property of American Greetings Corp, Those Characters From Cleveland, Inc, and Nelvana Ltd. No relationship with any of the aforementioned companies is implied by this work.

The story is the original idea of the author and is not intended to represent any real event. Furthermore, the uses of the characters are not meant to represent any real person, explicitly or implied. Any use of the story, in whole or in part, must not be completed without the prior consent of the author.


	4. The Bear and the Dragon

_Of the Same Coin_

Part Four: The Bear and the Dragon

"_Black shadows fall_

_From the lindens tall,_

_That lift aloft their massive wall_

_Against the southern sky;_

_And from the realms_

_Of the shadowy elms_

_A tide-like darkness overwhelm_

_The fields that round us lie."_

_--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow_

In the land of Care-A-Lot were situated many houses with walls of fluffy clouds. And one of these houses belonged to Defender Bear, and he was lying in his bathtub. The water was topped by mountains of white lather, such that, were anyone else in the room with the white bear, they would've spotted him only after much searching, for not only was he submerged up to just beneath his nose, the part of him above the water was covered in suds. He looked like all the other piles of bubbles around him.

The only things that separated Defender from the soap were his eyes. They seemed to be burning a wall with fixation, but the bear's true focus was elsewhere. His thought remained in the morning, where he had managed to persuade his former adversary, Shade Foyle, to consider leaving his mischievous ways, only to have all his efforts spoiled by the intrusion of the Care Bear Family's long-time nemesis, the cruel sorcerer, No Heart. The potent aroma of the bath soap could not wash away the disappointment, or the determination, of the bear lying underneath the foam.

_I'll save you yet, Shade_, Defender vowed to himself. _I…we… won't give up on you. Just be strong, Shade. We're almost like brothers, like family, and this family has taught me not to give up on one another, so I won't give up on you._

In another part of the sky, someone else was dealing with disappointment. No Heart's intentions, however, were of a more malicious disposition.

"Those accursed Care Bears!" he nearly shouted as he paced angrily back and forth in his magical atelier. "How is it possible that no matter what plan I put together, they _always_ ruin it? Always!"

In a steel cage mounted ten feet off of the floor of the study was Shade Foyle. Once the sorcerer's newest minion, the black bear was now sitting very still in the cage. Although the cage seemed to be nothing more than bars, Shade was making no attempts to escape it. (That, or all his previous attempts had failed.)

"Whatever plans you're coming up with, I won't be a part of them anymore," said Shade with a trace of defiance.

"Shut up, you!" No Heart snapped back. "I fully intend on getting all my usefulness out of you, whether you like it or not! So just sit there like the obedient beast I made you to be and be quiet!"

And so, No Heart continued to think of another scheme to rid himself of the Care Bears. "There _must _be some new strategy I can use against those disgusting cretins," he thought aloud. Just then, the enormous black cauldron in the center of the room, which had a luminous green liquid, suddenly dimmed. The still waters began to tremble, catching No Heart's attention. He stomped to the edge of the cauldron, and stared curiously at the mixture; this wasn't his magic at work.

The water started to swirl rapidly, creating a small whirlpool within the cauldron. In the center, the green water darkened even more until it was pitch black. From within, two red lights appeared and formed a pair of eyes.

"Pardon my interruption," came a voice from the murky waters. "I was just passing by, and I heard that you were looking for a way to get rid of something, am I right?" The voice had a hiss to it, and its pitch fluctuated while it spoke.

"I didn't **ask** anybody for help, so you can just be on your way now," snapped the sorcerer.

"Now, why would you just simply dismiss me like that? Wouldn't you like to hear what I have to offer? I think you might like it."

No Heart sneered. "I am No Heart! I don't _like_ anything!"

The voice continued promoting its offer. "But, what if I told you that I could show you a power, something that will wipe away all your enemies? You'd want that, yes?"

By then, No Heart's megalomania found the proposal too irresistible to simply pass up. But the sorcerer remained skeptical. "You're offering me power, you say? Certainly, I can't expect that you'd simply bestow that without some kind of compensation?"

"Well, aren't you the perceptive one? Yes, there is something I need from you: passage to your world.

"Though I am communicating with you now, I require a corporeal form to inhabit so that I can interact with this world. That way, you can witness the power for yourself."

"I'll…think about it," No Heart waved the being off, not wanting to sound eager. But at this point, the fiendish sorcerer was ready to try just about anything if it meant the elimination of the Care Bears.

The next morning, the entire Care Bear Family was gathered around the heart-shaped table in the Hall of Hearts. For some, this was a little too early, and they were trying to shake off the drowsiness (especially Bedtime, who had just finished his night shift and was ready to call it a day). Defender Bear, on the other hand, had a travel mug full of coffee and a hard, determined look on his face; he appeared ready to leap into another fight.

True Heart Bear struck her gavel to begin the meeting. "Thank you for coming, everyone," she started. "We have a pressing matter to attend to; that's why we've convened so early. As such, we shall get down to business. Wish Bear, will you please brief the family on the situation?"

Wish stood up from her seat next to Defender. "Yes, True Heart," she started, holding the paper with her notes. "Two days ago, Bedtime, Defender, and I went to meet Shade Foyle on an island down on Earth. After a…um…" she paused, then looked at Defender. He looked back and simply shrugged. Wish continued, "After a 'heated discussion', we succeeded in persuading Shade to come back with us to Care-a-Lot. However, we were ambushed by No Heart, who abducted Shade against his will."

Wish's summary was immediately followed by Defender's Bear fist slamming onto the table. "Now that that's settled, may we **please** go help Shade now?" he exclaimed impatiently. "Why are we wasting time here? He needs our help, people!"

True Heart pounded her gavel loudly. "That's enough, Defender Bear! We understand your concern, but we're not about to simply set out blindly. Please restrain yourself for just a moment."

The white bear was just about to snap back, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw the worry in Wish Bear's countenance, and thought the better of it. He simply let out a huff, crossed his arms, and silenced himself.

"Thank you," said True Heart. "Now, we must assume that No Heart is planning another attempt to eliminate us, so we must be ready with our own preparations. That's why we—"

**_BOOM!_**

The elder was interrupted by a loud explosion, followed by a strong tremor that shook nearly every one in the Hall of Hearts out of their chairs and onto the floor. (Good things clouds are soft.) Fortunately, the quaking subsided after about 10 seconds.

"Is everyone alright?" Noble Heart quickly shouted out.

"I'm okay," answered Cozy Heart Penguin.

"Other than my fur being mussed up, I'll be fine," was Proud Heart Cat's reply.

"I will once Birthday gets off me," groaned Grumpy Bear.

"Sorry, Grumpy," the yellow bear apologized.

While the rest of the Care Bear Family picked up the mess in the meeting room, True Heart, Noble Heart, Tenderheart Bear, and Brave Heart Lion headed towards the control room to try and find the source of the disturbance.

"Is it No Heart again?" Brave Heart asked.

"There's no sign of him on the sensors," replied Tenderheart, who was sitting at the main console.

"Any harm to Care-a-Lot?" inquired Noble Heart.

"Only minimal damages. Whatever caused that cloud quake, it doesn't appear to have been in our proximity."

"Phoenix, come with me," said Wish as he picked up the last fallen chair. Defender Bear followed her outside to a lookout platform next to the Hall of Hearts. It looked undamaged, so the teal bear stepped out to the rail, and with a quick stare from her tummy symbol, produced her star telescope. She started to scan the horizon for clues.

"See anything, dear?" Defender asked his companion.

She focused the scope's sight. "I think I…there!" She handed the telescope to Defender and pointed out in one direction. "Look there!" The white bear lifted the scope and peered out where Wish was pointing.

Off in the distance, he could see black, and not much else.

"What is it?" he asked Wish.

"I don't know, but we'd better inform the others immediately."

So, Wish and Defender ran back inside the Hall of Hearts, into the control where the four leaders were still assessing the situation. Noble Heart was the first to notice the pair. "Wish? Defender? Did you find something?"

Wish nodded. "I found something with my star telescope," she informed the group. She reached over Tenderheart's shoulder and typed in some commands at the console. This brought up a map of a section of the Pacific Ocean. A couple of seconds later, a sizeable black spot obscured part of the water.

"What is _that_?" Brave Heart spoke out.

"Something that deserves investigating," True Heart concluded. "Defender Bear," she turned to the two. "You and Wish Bear mobilize a few teams and head out to that black spot."

"You got it, True Heart," Defender replied.

"And please, don't be hasty. Who knows what dangers are out there?"

"Okay-okay," he partially rebuffed her as the two left.

Bright Heart Raccoon had joined the four leaders in the control room, while Wish, Defender, Birthday Bear, Cozy Heart Penguin, Good Luck Bear, Harmony Bear, Friend Bear, and Secret Bear set out for the black anomaly in the Pacific. It wasn't long before they could see it in the horizon, and the closer they got, the more apparent its enormity was for the group. It was a pillar of pitch black that spanned into the depths of the ocean to as high into the sky as the bears and cousin could see.

"Defender Bear to Bright Heart Raccoon," said the white bear into the cloud car's radio.

"Bright Heart Raccoon here."

"Bright Heart, what exactly are we dealing with here?" he asked the smart cousin.

"It's nothing," the raccoon replied honestly. Even so, the answer wasn't quite what Defender Bear had been expecting. He was speechless for a moment before he radioed back to the control room

"Whaddaya' mean, 'nothing'?" he almost shouted into his radio. "We can see this huge black column from miles away!"

"But that's just it, Defender. The signals from our sensors and radar aren't getting reflected back to the Hall of Hearts when it reaches that area. That's why it came up as black on the world map in the control room. That 'column' you see is, in simple terms, a vacuum—nothing at all.

"You mean, like, a black hole?" asked Defender, bewildered

"Well, sort of. A black hole is supposed to absorb everything that comes near its gravitational pull. But, this column...even though it goes down into the ocean, the water level hasn't been affected in any way. Nor has it penetrated through the earth into the Atlantic Ocean. It seems to be some sort of self-contained black hole. Something like this is unprecedented in the scientific community. It's fascinating!"

"I'm more worried about the safety of the humans than science, Bright Heart," Defender responded, not sharing his cousin's fascination.

"But there's more to this 'column' than you realize," the raccoon carried on.

"I don't know how much more I can take."

"Well, I'm sure you want to know that in the middle of where the column is now, is where No Heart's castle used to be."

Defender slammed on the brakes of his cloud car, and he and Wish Bear were jerked forward by the inertia, their seat belts keeping the pair in their seats. The other cars slowed down and stopped. The white bear fumbled around for the radio again.

He frantically asked, "Are you absolutely sure, Bright Heart?"

"Yes. Based on the last known position of the castle, and the approximate time the column appeared, those two points overlap each other."

_Shade_, he instantly thought. "Do you think it's still there?"  
"Inside?" Bright Heart sounded perplexed. "If it were a black hole, anything inside would have certainly been pulverized by the intense gravity. But, like I said, this is something unprecedented, so who knows how it is behaving from the inside."

"Guess there's only one way to find out," Defender remarked aloud.

"Honey, you're not going to just fly us into that thing, are you?" Wish protested.

"Of course not, Wish," the white bear immediately reassured her. "But I fear we may be running out of time."

Defender accelerated the cloud car, and a few minutes later, all eight team members were within several yards of the massive black pillar. Nothing could be seen inside; it looked solid all of the way around.

"What's our next move?" asked Birthday Bear.

"I'm going to get closer," said Defender as he unbuckled himself from his seat. "Keep the line open with the Hall of Hearts in case they discover something."

"Be careful, Phoenix," pleaded Wish. He nodded, stepped out of the car, and began to float in the sky. He slowly and cautiously approached the column, looking any sign of No Heart's castle within, or at least an entrance inside. He floated up to where it was right in front of his nose, and held his position there for a moment. Just then, he thought he felt a faint sensation—some kind of sign of life from inside the seeming void. Instinctively, he lifted a hand, and reached into the black.

The next thing Phoenix Audubon knew, he was coming to consciousness, lying prostrate on the ground. He blinked his eyes a few times; for the first few seconds, all he could see was black. Had he gone blind? No, he put a hand in front of his face, and he could see the brown glove on it. He picked himself up, and looked around. Indeed, Phoenix was surrounded by pitch black all around him, even beneath him. In fact, the "ground" he was supposedly standing on was indiscernible from the rest of the surroundings. Curiously, the white bear slowly bent down and tried to reach down to touch the sole of his foot. To his surprise, he found that he could. And yet, despite not seeming to have a foundation, Defender Bear didn't feel like he was falling at all.

Actually, he couldn't feel anything at all. Not hot, not cold. "Hello?" he called out loudly. He strained to hear an echo, but heard nothing. He couldn't feel any kind of wind or breeze; even when he breathed, it felt stale.

And then, Phoenix finally remembered what happened before he came to. "Am I…am I inside the black pillar?" he asked aloud, not actually expecting someone to come along and answer his question. _That would explain the lack of anything_, he surmised.

Without warning, something lightly struck the bear on his back. He turned around, and to his horror, it was Beastly. He was on his back; he was literally floating around in the darkness. He looked in sorry condition: his normally brown arms and legs were paled to near-white, and his face was purple. Defender couldn't see any sign of movement from the little monster.

"If this really is a void," he said to Beastly, "then there wouldn't be any air for you, I suppose. So, why am I not passed out like you? It must be the phoenix spirit in me, I guess." He took a moment to reflect on his good fortune, then turned back to Beastly. As a Care Bear, Phoenix really couldn't leave Beastly in such a state. "Even so, I'm certain I'm gonna' regret this," he sighed, and then took in a deep "breath". He paused, focused some of his magic, pinched the short troll's big, round nose, and shut his eyes before he exhaled into Beastly's mouth. Immediately, the color began to return to his cheeks and extremities. A couple of seconds later, Beastly began coughing back to life.

Defender was also hacking, but for a different reason. "Bleagh! Don't you ever use mouthwash, Beastly? Ugh! ...Mister Beastly?"

Beastly had stopped coughing and starting gasping for air and grabbing his neck. Realizing there was still no air for him, Phoenix waved his hands around Beastly, forming a bubble full of air around him. The little guy started coughing again, but was soon replaced by more constructive pants and inhalations.

"Oh-thank-you-thank-you-thank-you-thank-youuuuuu!" Beastly got on his knees and clung to the bear's ankle.

"Uh, you're welcome, I suppose," said Defender, shaking his foot loose. "All right Beastly, tell me where everybody…er, _everything_ is."

The mischievous one tried to pull a fast one. "Oh yeah, and what do **I** get out of telling **you**?"

Phoenix didn't feel like dealing with this right now. "You get to stay in your air bubble, Mister Beastly, that's what."

This was a good enough reason for the troll. "Okay-okay, I'll tell you. After No Heart came from the last time you nasty Care Bears beat him, he was working on another plan to get rid of you all, when someone, or something, started talking to him from inside his cauldron."

"Who?"

"I don't know! It said it would give the boss some kind of 'power', if it got 'passage' into our world."

"What kind of 'passage'?"

"It said something about needing a cuh…cuh…corporal form," Beastly tried to explain, apparently having reached the limits of his vocabulary.

"You mean, 'corporeal'?"

"Yeah-yeah, that's the word it used. Anyways, No Heart waited a couple of hours before he decided to accept this guy's offer. So he zaps Shade until he's unconscious, and sends him into the cauldron."

Defender Bear had gotten the feeling this story was not going to have a happy ending. "And? And?"

"Well…a bunch of black stuff exploded out of the cauldron, and then…I couldn't breathe…and then _you_ showed up," Beastly finished, trying to keep up the tough act. Defender was not paying that part much attention.

"So, where is everybody? Where is the castle?" the bear pressured Beastly for an answer.

"I-I-I don't know!"  
Phoenix let out a frustrated sigh. Clearly, he'd gotten all the pertinent information from the lackey that he could. "Well in that case, I'm going to search for any sign of Shade or No Heart's castle."

"Hey! You're not just gonna' _leave_ me here," Beastly gulped, "alone? In the dark?"

Defender sighed again. "You can come along if you want to," he offered despite not fully celebrating the idea of traveling with the little mischief-maker.

Beastly responded with his "shuk-shuk-shuk-shuk-shuk-shuk" laugh and followed the Care Bear in the darkness.

Phoenix couldn't tell how long they had walked. His caring phone wasn't working properly, so he couldn't tell how much time had passed. He wasn't even sure which direction he was going; he just started walking, with Beastly tagging along. He had hoped he could find some kind of clue, or even a sign of life. But the blackness seemed to go on forever, all around the pair, never changing.

"How long are we going to be walking around in here?" Beastly moaned inside his air bubble.

"Until we find something, I guess," Phoenix replied honestly.

"Oh…did we find anything yet?"

"No."

"Okay." And about one minute later: "Did we find anything now?"

"No!"

Having experienced the consequences of annoying someone with magical powers, Beastly decided against repeating the question. Nevertheless, he got the answer he desired when Defender Bear suddenly stopped.

"W-w-w-why did you stop?"

Phoenix didn't answer right away; he felt the temperature, which was tepid to begin with, suddenly drop. His fur stood on end. Out in the nothingness, he thought he sensed something…familiar.

"I don't think we're alone," the bear finally uttered.

Beastly perked up a bit. "No Heart? Is that you?" he started to shout.

"No, not him," said Defender. This left Beastly out of people he wanted to meet in this darkness, and even No Heart hadn't been an exciting thought. He decided to do what he did best: run away.

Phoenix Audubon wasn't in any hurry to follow the little creature. In fact, given the circumstances, Beastly was probably safer with nothing around to hurt him. He was more concerned about who or what was so nearby, yet remained hidden. Even in the vacuum of the darkness, he swore he heard something move behind his back. He spun around, but found nothing there. But once again, that same sensation moved past his back. Phoenix gathered himself for a moment. Whatever it was, he would face it with all his courage. So, he turned around once more.

"Shade?" Defender Bear couldn't believe it. About 20 feet in front of him, there was Shade Foyle, standing by himself. Although, he wasn't moving and his eyes were closed.

"Shade? Shade! Are you all right?"

The black bear did not reply, and did not move. Defender took two steps forward.

"Shade!" he was now shouting. "Can you hear me?"

**_"The being you are referring to cannot answer you." _**The voice that came from Shade's mouth was not only his, but another one as well—a booming, distorted voice. Immediately, a haze began to surround Shade, nearly as black as the darkness around both of them. The haze then shot straight up over the bear's head, where Defender witnessed with disbelief as the face of a dragon started to materialize from the haze, complete with two red, shining slits for eyes. Down below, the rest of the haze took shape in an enormous, serpentine shape, and the figure of Shade Foyle stood still amidst the formation.

"What…what _are_ you?" Defender shouted to the shadowy creature.

"Wish Bear to Defender Bear! Come in!" said the teal bear into her radio repeatedly. So far, she hadn't received any sort of reply. Good Luck Bear decided that now was the best time to call back to Care-a-Lot.

"Good Luck Bear to Hall of Hearts," he radioed in from his cloud car.

"This is Noble Heart. Go ahead, Good Luck."

"Noble Heart, we've arrived at the 'black hole', and…well, you're not going to believe this, but Defender Bear stepped into it."

"He what?"

"Yeah, and we haven't been able to contact him since. Should we...you know, follow him in there?"  
There was a long pause on the other end. Good Luck wasn't looking forward to the idea of entering the pitch black pillar, but he would go if the elders said he should.

"Good Luck, tell the others to hold their position for now. There's no sense in venturing into something we have no information on."

"Will do, Noble Heart. Good Luck out." He shouted to the others, "Hey, guys! Noble Heart says to wait out here." Everyone nodded to show comprehension. Even Wish Bear, although she was clearly concerned for her best friend's safety.

_Who knew so much could happen after only one minute_, Good Luck Bear though to himself.

Meanwhile, the dragon-looking creature did not answer Defender Bear's question right away. The bear and the dragon were locked at the eyes, both gazing fiercely as if trying to discern some kind of knowledge from the other.

**_"I must say, it has been ages since I have met anyone that could exist within my void," _**the creature finally spoke, still using Shade's voice along with its own. **_"So I shall entertain your demand._**

**_"I am simply known as 'the shadow dragon'. I have existed in the cosmos for longer than you could comprehend, puny being. I have fed off the energies of worlds that can no longer sustain life. I have feasted on many worlds in my time…but it has been too long since I last savored such succulent energy._**

**_"It was fortunate for me, then, that I happened to be near this world. For a planet as small as this, I could sense vast amounts of energy. I was hungry, and I decided that I had to have this world's energy for my own."_**

"But…" Defender started to say, but the shadow dragon continued on.

**_"I could sense that one being possessed more energy than the majority of the other creatures on this planet. So I observed it for some time. This creature—he called himself "No Heart"—was constantly expending his energy on a bunch of other beings…which, consequently, I assume you are one of them?"_**

"Er, I…"

"'**_What a waste of perfectly tasty energy!' I said to myself. So, I figured I should help myself to some of it. I contacted this No Heart, and promised him power. This was the perfect bait, if you think about it—he wanted some way to rid himself of you and your puny lot, and I told him I had such a way. He was a skeptical one…said there must be a catch to my offer._**

"**_There was a catch, of course. You see, being made of shadows, it's rather difficult for me to survive in a world full of light. As such, I needed a being to host me so I could enter your world. Eventually, No Heart provided me with one, as you can plainly see." _**Phoenix gathered he was referring to Shade. **_"Once I had possession of this little being, I went ahead and set up a void so that I wouldn't need this being here."  
_**"Where _is _No Heart!" the white bear finally interrupted the dragon's monologue.

"**_Oh, him? Well, I suppose he and his castle are somewhere within this void. Of course, if you were to look for it, that could take you some time. This place is a lot bigger than it looked from the outside, as I'm sure you've figured that out by now. Of course, this is nothing compared to the rest of the universe—"_**

"Let Shade go!" Phoenix shouted again.

"**_Well, aren't you the needy little one," _**said the shadow dragon in a huff. **_"But, like I said, I don't require this host anymore, so you can have it."_** With that, the creature moved itself off of Shade, releasing his hold over him, and the black bear fell over limply.

"Shade!" Defender yelled as he ran to his twin's side. He picked him up a bit; Shade felt cold to the touch, but he was still alive.

"**Can he exist in this void, too? Such resilience is rare in the universe," **the shadow dragon remarked. It was only his own, distorted voice now talking to Defender. **"It's a shame you all will be snuffed out very soon."**

"What!"

"**That's the sole reason I came to this world, wasn't it? I'm not leaving without its' energy!"**

"But, what'll happen to the earth if you do that?"

"**Oh, it'll just be a barren sphere orbiting around," **the dragon answered nonchalantly.**  
**Phoenix laid down Shade gently, stepped in front of him, and held out his hands. "You can do that! I…I won't let you harm the humans of this planet!"

"**You? You would try to stop me?" **The dragon began to laugh so loudly that it didn't need any kind of matter to drown the bears in its amusement. **"I can't recall the last time anyone's tried to put up a resistance to me. And let me tell you now: they've all failed. Whole populations couldn't stop me. Just what makes you think you alone could stop me?"**

In all honestly, Phoenix wasn't sure of the answer to that question himself. He had stepped into the pillar of darkness to save his twin; he hadn't expected to face something this enormous. And if it had enough power to banish No Heart, how was _he_ supposed to stand up to it? Normally, caring missions were saving one person on Earth, but _all_ of them? Nevertheless, Defender Bear remained steadfast in his mind.

"My name is Phoenix Audubon, and also, Defender Bear," went the bear's declaration. "I am a member of the Care Bear Family. Our mission is to protect the feelings of the human beings of planet Earth. We help them to laugh, love, and enjoy themselves and each other. We defend from those who would seek to bring them pain and despair."

"**Well, forgive me for not sounding impressed, Phoenix Audubon," **chided the shadow dragon, clearly not impressed by the bear's speech, **"but you are wasting my time, and there is much energy for me to consume. Now, if there's nothing further, I shall now surround this 'Earth', as you call it, in my void."**

"You'll have to go through me first!" Defender Bear blurted out immediately. He tried not to wince—he still wasn't confident that he could take the shadow dragon on. And neither did the dragon. He let out another fit of roaring laughter.

"**Oh, you're too much! But, since my travels almost never include someone to chat with, I shall allow you the privilege of humoring me." **The dragon began to shift its gigantic hazy, snake-like body so that it was now behind the upper "torso" that faced Defender Bear. **"Feel free to strike me whenever you're ready," **the shadowy alien goaded.

_Oh, this is turning out perfect_, Phoenix thought sarcastically to himself. He took a few deep breaths. _Well, if I've got any chance at this, I'll have to him fast, and with a lot of force. Okay, here goes nothing._ He made a lightning-fast dash to his right so as not to get Shade, who was still unresponsive, caught up in the fray. Then, he summoned up as much of his magic as he could in a few seconds, held his hands out at the shadow dragon's face, and unleashed his assault. First, he sent two large, intertwined bursts of flames spiraling at the dragon, which exploded on contact. Not stopping, he next sent out a blue bolt of electricity into the blast. Finally, he hurled a purple beam of pure magical energy towards the dragon, which caused an even bigger blast. When the smoke finally subsided, Phoenix watched intently where he sent his attack. He couldn't see the shadow dragon anymore. Was that it? Had he won?

"**That was certainly disappointing," **came the dragon's voice. The smoke began to shift, and reformed into the shadow dragon's shape. **"You didn't even make a scratch!" **it gibed him. _How would you even scratch a shadow? _Defender thought to himself. **"However, this has shown you possess quite a bit of energy. I can't imagine how delicious the rest of your energy will be once I drain you of it! But first, I shall play with my dinner!" **The shadow dragon's red eyes began to shine even more as it tilted its head back, and then shot out a huge blast of shadow straight at Defender.

"Care Bear, stare!" he immediately reacted. His shield tummy symbol lit up, and he sent the stare at the dragon's attack. It held the shadow at bay, but Defender Bear couldn't keep it up as the blast completely enveloped him. It pushed him down into the darkness, and the dragon's streaming shot was bitterly icy. Defender couldn't do anything to counteract this assault. Mercifully, the blast stopped, and Defender was lying on his back, his heavy breathing and chattering teeth the only thing moving about him. Not only had that left him cold, but he also felt drained. It took all his effort to lift himself off of the "ground". He got to his knees, but couldn't pick himself up.

_What power! _was the first thought in his mind. _Now I can understand how he must've taken out No Heart. I don't know if I can withstand another hit like that! But, if I lose, what'll happen to Shade…to the Care Bear Family…to the entire world? I've got to get up!_ He looked up, and saw the shadow dragon sail down from above and settle in front of him.

"**Well, it looks like this shall be all I get from you. In case you hadn't noticed, that attack absorbed some of your energy. And I must say, it was indeed very tasty.**

"**So now, you shall become my appetizer, and then the main course—your planet!"**

The shadow dragon reared its head back one more time, and as Defender Bear looked up despairingly, he wondered if it really would end this way for him. How he wished he had done more for the Care Bear Family, how he should have shown Wish Bear more affection…

…But, out of nowhere, a thick sheet of ice rose up in front of him, and arched high over his head. When the dragon unleashed its attack, the ice wall cracked around the edges a bit, but it held up and shielded the white bear from the devastating blow.

Phoenix couldn't believe it; his eyes were wide in amazement. The ice suddenly sublimed into steam, and on the other side was Shade Foyle. He too was on his knees, having not yet fully recovered from being possessed by the shadow dragon.

"Shade," Phoenix uttered. "You—"

"You have to stop it, Phoenix," said Shade, his monotone belying the sense of urgency. "You're the only one who can."

"But…I…I can't…"

"Yes, you can, Phoenix," the black bear answered back, trying to making himself sound reassuring. "I know you can do it. I trust that you can."

"**How dare you, you insignificant speck!" **the Shadow Dragon bellowed. **"How _dare_ you defy me like this! Foolish creature, I shall enjoy devouring you, after I take care of your friend here!" **It reared its head back once more, to prepare for his final assault. Meanwhile, Phoenix was fighting on a second front: within himself.

_I already tried to stop the dragon, and I couldn't_, he thought to himself. _How can Shade believe in me? How…can he trust me? _Phoenix looked over to Shade, and somehow, beneath the cold gaze of Shade's eyes, the white bear swore he could see a glimmer, a spark of hope. So he closed his eyes and concentrated with all his might.

_If Shade trusts in me, then I will, too! I believe in me! I can do this!_

The Shadow Dragon let loose his burst of darkness, and aimed it squarely at Phoenix Audubon…

…but before it could reach him, a brilliant white light erupted from with the bear's body, forming a huge pillar of light that spread up and down into the void.

"**AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" **the dragon roared in agony. **"That light! I can't stand it!"**

Floating upright in the middle of the column, Phoenix Audubon opened his eyes, and stared straight at the dragon.

"Shadow Dragon," came his voice, which now had an echo despite the vacuum, "I will only tell you this once:

"LEAVE OUR WORLD, AND NEVER COME BACK!"

With that, the light from the pillar exploded out, and filled the void with the white light…

_Beep…Beep…Beep…Beep…_

_That sound…I recognize it…_

Defender Bear opened his eyes. As he expected, he was met with a soft white glow from above; the familiar continuous beeping from an EKG machine; the crisp bed sheets he was laying in.

"Where are you, Doc?" he called aloud.

Take Care Bear stepped in from the next room. "Ah, I see you're finally awake," he said to his usual patient.

"How long was I out this time," Defender asked, not really certain he wanted to know.

"Oh, just a few hours," said Take Care. "You have some visitors waiting out here for you. Shall I let them in?"

"Please."

Through the same door came Wish Bear and Cozy Heart Penguin. "Oh, Phoenix! I'm so glad you're all right," Wish said as she took her usual seat by Defender's bed.

Suddenly, the white bear started to remember what happened. "Wait! Where's…where's Shade? Is he…?" He whipped his head around, and saw that this time, there was another bed in the room. And lying there was Shade Foyle. Like Defender, he was bandaged in several places. However, despite all the dialogue, he was still asleep. Defender just stared at him for a moment; even in sleep, Shade's face had the same stern, almost confused look on it.

Defender looked to Take Care. "Is he…?" Take Care took a deep breath before answering.

"He just needs some rest, but I believe he'll pull through. Even though he bears a resemblance to you, he doesn't seem to have the 'rapid recovery' trait that you do."

"I see," replied Defender. He turned back to Wish and Cozy Heart. "Okay you two, I'm sure you want to hear all about what happened, right?"

"Only if you're up to it, dear," said Wish.

"Sure. It's not like I'm in any condition to do much else." So he told the two all about what had happened after he had fallen into the pillar of darkness. There were a few gasps after he relayed some of the details, but Defender expected as much.

"You mean all that happened in five minutes?" asked Cozy Heart, puzzled.

"Five minutes? It seemed like forever to me!"

"No, Phoenix," Wish started, "after you fell in, we were told to wait for further instructions. But about five minutes later, we all watched the column start to fade away. That's when we saw you and Shade start falling from the sky. When we caught both of you, you were all cut up and bruised. So we brought you back to Take Care's clinic, and well, here we are."

"Weird," answered Defender flatly. "Hey, I just thought of something: whatever happened to Beastly? And No Heart?"

Wish Bear explained, "Well, when the darkness disappeared, we found Beastly floating around in a bubble—I figured you had something to do with that. Anyways, he was desperate to return to No Heart's castle. While we weren't thrilled at the idea, we figured he had been through enough. The Hall of Hearts got a lock on the castle's position after the pillar was gone, so we dropped him off there. We didn't run into any trouble from No Heart or his shadows."

"So I guess the dragon was telling the truth," Defender said to himself.

After stories were exchanged, Take Care came back in to check on both patients. "Now, should I have a security team ready when your friend wakes up?"

"No!" Defender blurted out. "I mean, no, that won't be necessary. I assure you, he won't be any trouble."

It only took until the next morning for Defender Bear to fully recover from his ordeal. Shade Foyle, on the other hand, needed three days' rest before coming to. During that time, every Care Bear and Care Bear Cousin stopped by Take Care Bear's clinic to get a peek at the formerly dangerous bear—some came more than once. Defender Bear kept waiting for his Caring Phone to ring to let him know when Shade had recovered, and as soon as he got the call, he hurried over to the clinic. When he arrived, he also found True Heart Bear and Noble Heart Horse waiting. Take Care Bear gave them the okay to see the patient.

When they stepped in, the only things that had changed since the last time they saw Shade were a few less bandages and his eyes were open. But he still had the same empty demeanor about him.

True Heart was the first to speak to the black bear. "Shade?" she called to him. He slowly turned his head to look at the elder. "I don't think we've been properly introduced. My name is True Heart Bear. Over here is Noble Heart Horse."

So far, Shade gave them no response, so True Heart continued.

"Well, I am curious—what do you know about us, about the Care Bear Family?"

"All I know of you is that No Heart wanted me to destroy you all," he replied honestly, yet apathetically. "Well, I think Phoenix over there tried to tell me about your family, but I was more concerned with beating the truth out of him at the time."

True Heart and Noble Heart both looked at Defender, who could only laugh nervously at the candid response.

Noble Heart asked, "Well, you…don't want to destroy us anymore…do you?"

"No, I suppose not."

Both elders let out a soft sigh of relief. "Well Shade," Noble Heart continued, "since it looks like you don't have anywhere else to go, we'd be happy to have you stay with us."

Upon hearing this, Defender filled with enough excitement for both he and Shade. "You mean it, Noble Heart?"

"Of course," said True Heart. "After all he's been through, I think the best thing for Shade is a safe place where he can recuperate in peace. What do you say, Shade?"

The black bear did not act any more thrilled than before. "Okay, that's fine," was all he said in response.

Defender Bear had agreed to let Shade stay at his house once he was released from Take Care's care. Defender lent his bed to his "twin" while he took the sofa. They spent the next week touring Care-A-Lot and the Forest of Feelings. As happy as Defender was to show Shade around, the black bear didn't seem any less indifferent for it. Though other bears and cousins pointed this out every now and then, Defender, true to his namesake, defended his new friend.

"He just doesn't know how to express his feelings yet," he said several times. "Just give him a chance. You'll like him, honest!"

The true test of acceptance came from two other family members. First, when walking through the Forest of Feelings, Defender and Shade came across Gentle Heart Lamb as she was tending to a garden. When she spotted the pair, she dropped the pruning shears she was holding.

Defender was quick to diffuse the tension. "Hey, Gentle Heart. Shade here has something to tell you." He gave a little shove to his twin. "_Don't_ you?"

"I…I want to tell you…that I'm sorry about what I did before," the black bear said to the lamb. The droll tone didn't convince Gentle Heart at first, but after seeing Defender Bear praying out of the corner of her eye, the lamb realized he was being sincere.

"Thank you for saying so. There's no hard feelings between us," she said.

When it came to Secret Bear, however, things weren't as cut-and-dry. When Secret spotted Shade walking with Defender in the city area of Care-A-Lot, he started to run away. Defender quickly cast a spell to levitate him a few inches off the ground to keep him in place, and he and Shade hurried to the floating bear.

"Please, Secret! Give us a chance for a moment," he pleaded. Secret stopped flailing his legs, but he looked no less uneasy at the sight of the black bear.

"I understand that you're scared of Shade," Defender continued, "but things are different now. Really! Shade just wants to apologize. So please, would you hear him out?"

Now Secret Bear was skeptical, and he folded his arms across his chest to show this. Still, the flight risk seemed to have passed, and so Defender set Secret back down to give Shade a chance to talk to him.

"Look," Shade began, "I'm sorry that I beat you up before. I…hope that we can be friends." And he held out his hand.

Secret turned his eyes to Defender and gave him a look that said, _That's it? Is he for real?_ The white bear countered with his own gaze that said, _Yes, you can trust him!_ Secret relented, and shook Shade's hand, to the obvious delight of Defender, who hugged both of them simultaneously afterwards.

At the end of the week, True Heart and Noble Heart called a meeting of the Care Bear Family. After all the weeks of being on alert, things had become relatively quiet in the skies above Earth. The bears and cousins took their seats; Shade Foyle was seated between Defender Bear and Wish Bear.

Noble Heart struck the gavel to begin the meeting. "Thank you all for coming. We'll try and run through this as quickly as possible, so you can all return to your affairs. What is the report on caring missions, Tenderheart?"

"16 missions since the last meeting, all completed without incident."

"Good to hear. Well, I shall go ahead and open the floor to any new business." No one spoke up at first.

"Very well then, I shall—"

"I have a suggestion."

Everyone turned around to see Defender Bear stand up.

"All right, Defender," Noble Heart acknowledged the white bear. "What do you have for us?"

"Well, you all have seen Shade here out and about in Care-A-Lot, and I got to thinking: why don't we let him stay?"

"He has been a model guest. I don't suppose that's out of the question," Noble Heart conceded.

"No, I mean, he should _really_ stay here."

"I don't follow you, Defender Bear?"

"What I'm saying is: we should make Shade Foyle a Care Bear!"

There was a collective gasp once Defender finished his statement, followed by an uproar of chatter. Noble Heart banged the gavel repeatedly.

"Order! Order! There will be order!" he shouted over the group. "Defender Bear, what you're asking for is no small order."

"I understand that, Noble Heart," said Defender, "but I really think that Shade would do a great job as a Care Bear, if everyone would just give him a chance."

Noble Heart and True Heart looked at each other for a moment. "Defender, while I think Shade seems willing to do good things, I don't think he's a good candidate as a Care Bear."

"But—"

"I'm sorry, but that's where we'll leave it. Now, if there's anything else—"

"**_NO!_**" Defender slammed his fist on the heart-shaped table. "I'm sorry, but I'm not ready to give up on Shade, no sir."

Even Shade was surprised by Defender's determination. "Really, it's okay," he said to try and calm down his twin.

"Let me handle this," Defender said quickly to him. "Now," turning back to the rest of the family, "I seem to recall that everyone seemed to accept another bear that saved one of their own from danger. So Shade's done some bad things before. He's made up for it, and I'm a witness to it! Besides, where else can he go? What else can he do? Can't you all see it in your own hearts to accept this reformed, this…this…this nice bear?" (He had run out of argument at this point.)

Defender had hoped someone would agree with him, but all he got was a deafening silence.

"I second Defender's motion." Wish Bear suddenly stood up. Defender looked to his best friend, and he was humbled by her cooperation.

Noble Heart sighed. "Well then, let us take a vote. All those in favor of accepting Shade Foyle into the Care Bear Family, please raise your hand."

Several hands went up. Defender Bear was grateful that is was more than just his and Wish Bear's that were raised. He was also happy to catch Share Bear's hand go up as well.

"And those that oppose?"

Other hands went up, but Defender instead looked at the red table. He waited as True Heart counted the number of hands.

"17 to 14. The ayes have it."

Defender started clapping, but stopped when he realized he was the only one. Shade had no outward reaction to the results.

"Well, Shade Foyle," Noble Heart said after the tally, "let me be the first to welcome you to the Care Bear Family." Again, the black bear did not appear affected at all by the news.

"The first order of business now will be to decide on a family name for Mr. Foyle," said True Heart.

"Actually, I have an idea," Defender chimed in again. "Okay, I thought about this all last night, and I came up with the perfect name.

He turned to his left. "Shade, what do you think of the name, 'Truth Bear'?"

The black bear merely shrugged his shoulders. "It's okay," was all he could muster.

Defender laughed nervously. "Well, that's settled."

"In that case," said Noble Heart. "Tenderheart, will you do the honors?"

Tenderheart, who had voted for Shade's inclusion to the family, walked over to where Shade was sitting. Defender Bear nudged his twin out to get out of his chair.

"Shade Foyle, do you pledge to uphold the mission and beliefs of the Care Bear Family?"

"I do," was the hollow-sounding response.

"Do you accept the responsibility of protecting the people of Earth and their feelings from those who would seek to harm them?"

"I do."

"And, do you promise to be an example for others to follow, and to help your fellow Care Bears and Care Bear Cousins in times of need?"

"I do."

"Then, it is my honor and privilege to name you Truth Bear, the newest member of the Care Bear Family." With that, Tenderheart's tummy symbol lit up, and a copy of it flew into Shade's chest. When it faded, upon the white fur was now a gold-rimmed mirror containing the reflection of a red heart inside of it.

When all was said and done, there was a polite applause from the rest of the family. Defender Bear whispered something into Truth Bear's ear. When the clapping subsided, Truth Bear spoke up with as much emotion as he could muster.

"My name is Truth Bear, and I am a member of the Care Bear Family."

THE END

Author's Notes:

Project Date: April 27—December 21, 2005

(Original Project Started: December 25, 2003)

The Care Bears and Care Bears Cousins are the property of American Greetings Corp, Those Characters From Cleveland, Inc, and Nelvana Ltd. No relationship with any of the aforementioned companies is implied by this work.

The story is the original idea of the author and is not intended to represent any real event. Furthermore, the uses of the characters are not meant to represent any real person, explicitly or implied. Any use of the story, in whole or in part, must not be completed without the prior consent of the author.


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